Pokemon Red
by Leitmotifincarnate
Summary: Follow Red as he embarks on his journey through the Kanto Region. Since he was a child, Red always dreamed about becoming a Pokemon master. Now with his new friend Charmander by his side, he finally gets his chance to prove himself on a long journey through his homeland. Loosely based off of Pokémon Red/Blue and the remakes.
1. Chapter 1 Red's First Pokemon

Pokémon Red

Summary: Follow Red as he embarks on his journey through the Kanto Region. Since he was a child, Red always dreamed about becoming a Pokémon master. Now with his new friend Charmander by his side, he finally gets his chance to prove himself on a long journey through his homeland. Loosely based off of Pokémon Red/Blue and the remakes.

Chapter 1: The Beginning

"Red, honey, you have to wake up dear. Today's the big day." Sylvia, Red's mom stated to her son as she shook him in order to wake him up from his deep slumber.

"Mmmmm…..just five more minutes mom." Red murmured, pulling his crimson blanket over his head. He didn't desire to get up today; he was just too tired. He didn't get a lot of sleep last night. He groaned, slowly opening his eyes to look at the blanket which was covering him. He had the blanket since he was a baby. His father had given it to him as a gift. It was covered with orange flame patterns and bloody red circles. Red cherished this piece of cloth; it was something that he could connect to his father.

Throughout his entire life, he had never met his father. He had lived in a house alone with his mom for as long as he could have remembered. The only time his father was ever mentioned in their household was when he made it an issue. He always pestered his mother about his dad, but she never gave him a direct answer; she would try to bring his attention to somewhere else or complain that she was too tired to explain what happened to him. It was the one crack in their otherwise seamlessly perfect relationship. His thoughts drifted back to the bedroom as his mother continued shaking him and calling his name.

"You've got to wake up dear, you've got to get your first Pokémon today." Sylvia reminded her son. As soon as the words left her mouth, Red bolted up from his bed, alert as a leopard on the prowl. He quickly stripped off his pajamas and slipped on his lucky red boxers along with his favorite t-shirt.

"Mom, where's my pants". Red complained to her as he rummaged through his drawers, unable to find his jeans.

"I just did a load of laundry, they should be in there. I'll go get them for you honey." Sylvia said sweetly to her son while smiling in an endearing way. Having said this, Sylvia retreated out of the bedroom and down the stairs to retrieve Red's jeans. Red followed her anxiously down the stairs. "Here honey." Sylvia said to her son, handing him a pair of jeans. "Don't forget to brush your teeth and eat breakfast dear." Sylvia advised. However, Red had rushed out of the room and out the door to Professor Oak's lab. "Ah Red." Sylvia mused. He could never stay still.

Red's heart was pounding. He was so excited, so very excited. He was about to start a new adventure. He was breaking out into a sweat as he was practically dashing to the lab. He had played this day over and over again in his mind. His first Pokémon; he wondered which one he would choose.

The first choice was Bulbasaur, the plant Pokémon. Being a dual type grass/poison Pokémon, Bulbasaur was a defensive choice as a battler. It isn't as impressive as the other two options, but it was a very safe choice for beginners. It has a noted calm temperament and natural ability to connect with its trainers, making them great partners to have. Red always dreamed of battling with Bulbasaur; Vine Whip, Leech Seed, Giga Drain, and Earthquake. Indeed, Bulbasaur was a legitimate choice.

On the other hand, Charmander, the second starter Pokémon was an entirely different case. Due to its fire typing, it is usually very stubborn and demands a strong trainer to lead it. With a fire tip tail, it is very dangerous if someone gets too close to it; it could burn off your hair in an instant! Charmander also is very independent and doesn't prefer to play with other Pokemon. This fire type always looks hot.

Another alternative was the water type Squirtle. It has a reputation for being a type of prankster. Squirtle is always interested in getting a good laugh out of even the most depressing situations. This playful attitude makes it the perfect choice as a playmate. In battle, it is no slouch either; it is a powerful choice with a wide move pool and quality stats. On attack from its Skull Bash will send your Pokémon into complete confusion.

Those words were what the guide stated about these three Pokémon. Red had practically memorized every word of the pamphlet which Professor Oak kindly sent him in the mail. Now he remembered why he couldn't fall asleep last night; he was up until two in the morning looking at that pamphlet. Still his sleep deprivation did not deter him.

Although his body felt like going back to bed and sleeping through the day, his mind was determined to get to Professor Oak's and receive his first Pokémon. Red grinned to himself thinking about the choice he had to make. All three of these Pokémon would make excellent partners. It would be tough to choose between the three, but the choice he would finally make would make him extremely happy. As he finished this thought, he saw Oak's lab in view. When he climbed the stone steps toward the structure, he got increasingly excited. 'Oh boy, my first Pokémon.' Red thought to himself. 'I can't wait'. Before he knew it he was at the entrance of Oak's lab.

"Here I go." Red said to himself as he took a deep breath and entered the facility.

He couldn't have been more amazed how clean it was; the tiles were polished and the walls were spotless. 'Professor Oak must have put as much work keeping this place in order as his research.' Red mused to himself.

"Ah Red there you are." A voice calling out to him stated. Red turned toward the direction of the voice. "I'm Professor Oak." Oak announced. "I see you're here for your first Pokemon." He looked at the boy with a kind expression on his face.

"Yes I am Professor." Red replied elatedly with his voice stretching and filling the room in an unnatural way. Oak chuckled in amusement at the boy's excitement.

"That's great son, we just have to wait for my grandson, Blue, to get here before we can start with the Pokémon selection process." Oak stated with a kind smile. Having said that the Professor went to a desk in his study and began writing something in a pad.

"Blue…." Red muttered quietly in disgust without the Professor hearing. Blue and Red had a long history. They had always been rivals; always fighting over even the littlest matters. When they were toddlers, they fought over toys. When they were five, they fought over who had the last swing on the swing set. At eight, with dreams of being a Pokémon master floating around in their naïve childish minds, they enacted pretend Pokémon battles. It normally ended with them yelling at each other over who won. In rare cases, they were on the ground kicking and screaming at each other in the dirt. The odd thing about it was that they always spent time together. Some people would call them the closest of pals. However others knew of the disdain they had for the other. These people always lamented that they could become great friends if they would overcome their jealousy for the other.

"Hello Grandpa!" a voice screeched, snapping Red out of his train of thought. There he was, Blue, in all of his self-proclaimed glory. He was wearing an ocean blue jacket that was left open so his tight black t-shirt was exposed. He also was wearing light brown shorts and flip flops. His trademark brown hair was gelled up as usual, with his glasses perched on his hair. This flamboyant look was the exact opposite of Red's more austere appearance. They always seemed to oppose the other. "Lookie, lookie, little Reddie is here." Blue said as he noticed him and teasingly tilted Red's baseball cap.

"Hi Blue." Red said politely, trying to hide the disdain from his voice, putting his cap back in place.

"Awe don't look so upset baby." Blue chided Red, pinching his cheeks. "You're gonna be a big boy now, getting your first Pokémon today and all." Blue continued to make fun of Red. Angered by these acts, Red huffed to himself in irritation as an embarrassed blush formed on his face. Blue noticed this and wanted to continue his teasing of his rival except Professor Oak interrupted him with a slight cough. Once the attention was back on him, the Professor began.

"Now boys, I have three Pokémon here for you, choose carefully as they will be your partner for a long journey throughout the Kanto region." Professor Oak lectured to the boys. "They will be with you through the good times and the bad times, through the triumphs and the defeats, and they will always be by your side. Treat them with the utmost respect and compassion. They are your partners; they are part of your family. With that being said I hope that you enjoy your journey." Oak concluded his short speech to the boys and motioned to the desk where the pokeballs were.

"After you," Blue said in a mildly flirtatious voice and directed Red with his hands in a way a gentleman would open a door for a lady. Red walked toward the desk very slowly, trying to process the moment and decide which Pokémon he was going to pick. He smiled inwardly as he made up his mind and the struggle of choosing his first Pokémon had faded away.

"I've made my choice" Red announced to the room, more to himself then anyone in particular. "Charmander I choose you!" Red took the ball from the desk and flung it down onto the floor.

"Char!" Charmander responded elatedly as he was released from his containment center. The orange lizard looked at Red happily and walked towards him.

"Ah, it looks like Charmander already has some affection for you." Professor Oak commented. "Normally Charmander don't respect their trainers at the start; this must be a sign that you'll become a great trainer." Oak said in a praising voice filled with admiration.

"Thank you Professor." Red gratefully responded while petting his new friend on the head.

"Okay it's my turn now!" Blue said gruffly, clearly jealous of the praise being poured on his rival from his grandfather. "Since you chose Charmander, Red." Blue mused. "I guess the appropriate thing to do is for me to choose Squirtle." Blue finished his statement, leading to him dramatically grabbing a pokeball and tossing it into the air.

"Squirtle Squir" a blue turtle Pokémon popped out of the ball, obviously elated at having been freed from the capsule device. It pranced around a little bit and tickled itself with its tail. It slowly waddled to its new trainer in a respectful, but also mildly playful, way. Once he arrived at Blue's feet, it gave him a mock salute.

"Red I challenge you to a Pokémon battle" Blue declared, pointing his finger at Red in an authoritative manner, emboldened from receiving his first Pokémon. Red and Blue stared each other in the eyes, locked in a battle that only those two understand. Their gazes locked; Red's eyes filled with a certain fire while Blue's eyes were beaming with arrogance.

"Fine then, I accept." Red said, gritting his teeth as he spoke.

"Boys, Boys." Professor Oak said in between the two boys, desperately trying to get their attention. "Don't fight in the lab, please go outside." He gestured toward the door.

"Okay Gramps." Blue responded in a respectful voice, eyes never leaving Red's face. "Come on Squirtle, Let's go outside." He motioned for Squirtle and Red to follow him.

"Squir Squir." Squirtle gleefully replied and followed his trainer outside to the grassy fields that surrounded the Professor's lab.

Red quietly followed his perpetual rival; they had always dreamed of this moment. Both of their fantasies always involved beating the other in a Pokémon battle, the ultimate test of skills. Red was certain that this battle was just the start of a new chapter in their rivalry.

"Okay Red, here I come." Blue started, sending out his Squirtle.

"Squirtle Squirl!" Squirtle cried, pumping its chest like a gorilla.

"Charmander come out." Red shouted at the top of his voice. "Let's do this." Red called out to his partner.

"Char! Char!" Charmander yelled to his trainer, expressing his determination to win.

"Oh Red." Blue remarked laughing to himself "you're so naïve." He stopped laughing and smirked at his opponent.

"No I'm not, I'm going to defeat you." Red replied defiantly. "Charmander use Ember." Charmander listened to his trainer's command and commenced his attack, spitting fire from his mouth in the direction of his opponent.

"Squirtle dodge." Blue commanded his Pokémon. Squirtle skillfully evaded the attack. After he finished dodging the flames, Squirtle turned his back to Charmander and wagged its tail at Charmander, taunting him. Blue laughed at this action while both Red and Charmander were angered at this action.

"Don't insult us." Red shouted enraged, wanting to beat Blue even more after the witnessing the obnoxious act of his Pokémon. "We'll get him Charmander." He encouraged his Pokemon, who was losing confidence. "Use Scratch." He ordered. This bolstered Charmander's confidence as it rushed toward Squirtle in an attempt to get close to him.

"Squirtle use Withdraw." Blue told his Pokémon. Squirtle hid himself in his shell while Charmander futilely attempted to harm his opponent. However the damage that Squirtle was receiving from the scratch attacks were minimal at best.

"Hahaha looks like Charmander can't get a decent hit in," Blue chortled "Squirtle use Water Gun at close range." He stopped joking and commanded his creature to strike its opponent.

"irtle Squir." Squirtle responded as he popped out of his shell and hit a startled Charmander with a blast of water. The amount of damage was too much for Charmander to take as it was knocked out in one hit.

"See Red I told you" Blue chided to his rival "Fire Pokémon stand no chance against water Pokémon. Fire types are weak to Water attacks therefore my Squirtle had an advantage over your Charmander from the start. You don't stand a chance as a Pokémon trainer. Smell ya later!" Blue said, turning his back on Red. His Squirtle followed him into the distance.

On the other side of the makeshift battlefield, Red could not believe it. He had lost his first Pokémon battle and worse it had to be to Blue. Blue always took the opportunity to rub salt into fresh wounds and that's what made it such a terrible experience, having the gall to lecture him about battling tactics. He always had a way of getting under Red's skin and causing massive irritation. It ate at Red that Blue was so naturally talented and smooth. He always seemed to have the upper hand. Red fell to his knees in disappointment and started to watch the ground fill with his tears. Then something amazing happened; his defeated Charmander had revived himself and had crawled toward his trainer in order to comfort him. He shoved his head into Red's hair and started to purr in a calming fashion. Shocked by this, Red pulled himself together and embraced the red creature. Suddenly elated by this act of kindness.

Washing the tears from his eyes Red responded to his Charmander with a newfound sense of confidence, "Don't worry Charmander, we'll get him next time." He told the lizard.

"Charmander Char." Charmander happily said to his trainer in an encouraging tone. Red pulled out his pokeball and put Charmander in the capsule device. He stood up and began to set out for Route One, but a voice called out to him.

"Wait Red." The Professor shouted hurrying toward him. "I forgot to give you something important, here." The Professor handed him a strange red device that looked like a phone. Red stared at it in amazement. "This device is a Pokedex. It is the most advanced encyclopedia on Pokémon research, it is a tool to help you on your journey…ugh..ugh," the Professor coughed in the middle of his sentence out of breath from running to catch Red before the trainer left on his journey. "It will record the Pokémon that you have met and caught. I need you to fill it out for the whole region of Kanto. I would do this task, but I'm am too old and too frail to make this difficult journey. I need someone young to do it for me." The Professor finished his speech and smiled at the young boy.

"Thank you Professor." Red responded, nodding his head as if to say that he was accepting the assignment. "I won't let you down."

"Oh and Red," Professor Oak replied to the new trainer, remembering something that he had forgot to say earlier "you should also take the Pokémon gym challenge; it will let you test your mettle as a trainer. The first gym is in Pewter City, two towns north of here." He pointed in the direction of the city.

"That sounds like a great idea professor, I'll do it." Red said excitedly, feeling like a new doorway had been opened for him. "I'll see you around." He said his farewells to the professor.

"Yes, Good-bye Red, good luck on your journey." Professor Oak said. Red turned and walked away from the lab onto his new adventure filled with anticipation.

'Ah,' Professor Oak thought to himself 'the adventures that those two will go on; I envy them'. With that thought concluded, Oak calmly turned around and walked back to his lab, eager to return to his research.


	2. Chapter 2 I'm on the Road

Pokemon Red

Chapter 2: I'm on the Road….

The grassy fields of Route one were beaming from the sunlight. It looked perfect to the eyes of Red, glossed over from a newfound sense of confidence. The day was cool so the lack of trees was not a problem. Swarms of wild Pokemon were running around in patches of tall grass. Red took in a deep breath.

'This is it,' He thought while springing one foot forward after the other 'here I go'.

Trudging through the fields brought with it disappointment, Red had been walking for over an hour, but he had not seen even a glimpse of a single Pokemon. He let out a loud cry mixed with annoyance and irritation. This cry, however, alerted a creature as it darted upward from the tall grass. It screeched at Red with a look of belligerence in its eyes. Red's heart pumped quicker than usual as he grabbed a pokeball from his pocket and threw it into the air. Out leapt Charmander, who let out a cry of joy at being released from its ball. The wild pokemon took this as a challenge and soared into the air. Red took this opportunity to pull out his Pokedex and scan what wild Pokemon it was.

"Pidgey, the bird Pokemon," The Pokedex stated, "These birds tend to fly in flocks and enjoy feeding on bug Pokemon such as Caterpie. They are very proud and take every challenge seriously in an effort to better itself." The object finished and turned itself off.

"A Pidgey neat," Red said with determination in his voice, turning his cap backwards "Let's get him. Charmander use ember".

"Char…Char…Char" Charmander screeched as flames shot out of his mouth at the flying Pokemon. The Pidgey skillfully avoided the uncoming flames and landed hard on Charmander for an attack.

"It must have been tackle" Red muttered while gritting his teeth. Charmander stumbled for a moment from the attack, but quickly got up from his trance. "Okay Charmander use ember again." Charmander listened to his trainer's call and proceeded to spit fireballs from his mouth at the bird. The Pidgey responded to the attack by flapping its wings. This caused dirt to rise up from the ground and smother the approaching flames. "Darn." Red cried in annoyance. "That must have been sand-attack. It looks like we have to hit it at close range buddy. "Use scratch". Charmander obeyed his trainer and landed a few hits on the Pidgey. The only downfall was that Pidgey was placing well aimed pecks on the fire lizard. Red in the moment of confusion, seized the opportunity and threw a Pokeball at the Pidgey. The Pidgey was completely startled from the move and did not have a chance to dodge. The ball fell to the ground with the Pidgey inside and began to shake. One shake. Two Shakes. Three Shakes! Pidgey was successfully captured.

Red leaped from the ground in excitement. He had caught his first Pokemon. Charmander himself was doing a little happy dance. He put Charmander back in his Pokeball and continued on the path to Viridian City.

As he continued walking, he saw more Pokemon. He encountered three Rattata, the third of which he was able to catch by blinding it with Pidgey's sand-attack. He couldn't believe he had already caught two Pokemon on his first day. His team was going to beat Blue, and eventually he, not Blue, was going to become a Pokemon champion. He smiled in joy at his own accomplishments. Squinting his eyes through the sun, red saw that there was a man surveying the land.

"Hello." the man greeted him "I'm a representative from the Viridian City Pokemart. Here have a Potion". He handed Red an item. "This allows you to heal your Pokemon, it's useful if you're outside the area of a PokeCenter."

"Thank you" Red replied to this act. He brought out his recently captured Rattata and sprayed it with the Potion. Rattata cryed in glee as its battle wounds were being healed. "Wow that really helps" Red noted at Rattata's improved condition.

"That's what I'm here for son." The merchant responded, waving his hand in farewell as he walked in the opposite direction Red was going.

Other than that encounter, Red did not encounter any other people. Traffic was very light. Even the wild Pokemon seemed to be sparse. Red spent most of his time musing to himself about battle strategies and defeating Blue. When he had entered Viridian City, it was already dusk. He was glad that he did not have sleep out in the open doors on his first night. He was already completely exhausted and dehydrated, his tired legs not use to this much exercise. He approached a red building with a sign that read "Pokemon Center, Heal your Pokemon Here, Lodging available". He propelled his aching muscles through the doors of the center and walked straight toward the counter.

"Hello my name is Nurse Joy." The nurse said. "Would you like us to heal your Pokemon?"

"Yes please." Red answered and handed over three Pokeballs, containing Charmander, Pidgey, and Rattata. "Can I also get a room for the night?" Red asked politely.

"Of course you can" Nurse Joy responded.

"Thank you so much for your help" Red replied gratefully, turning and walking towards his room.

Red was so tired that he collapsed on the bed the moment he entered the room. He didn't even bother to take off his shoes; his entire body was aching. He quickly fell into a deep slumber.

When he woke up in the morning, his body was still significantly sore. He tried to remedy this by taking a cold shower. Rubbing at this muscles in order to loosen them didn't seem to have an effect. He let out a sigh of frustration and let the water run down from his hair. He always took a cold shower when he was home but this didn't seem to be working. He stopped the water from running and readjusted it to make it hotter. He let out a sigh of relieve as his aching body was hit with the stream of hot water. Eventually, he got out of the shower feeling a little better, wrapping a towel around his waist and walking toward the mirror. He calmly washed the water on the mirror away with his hand and looked at himself. He looked pretty much the same. Red velvet eyes staring back at him with his dark brown hair flat on his head drenched in water. Red started brushing his teeth in a rhythmic motion, wondering what he was going to do today.

Once he stopped brushing he dried himself off and walked into his room. He rummaged through his clothes and chose appropriate attire. He slipped on a black t-shirt and yellow boxers. Looking at himself in the mirror, he thought he looked like a Beedril. Chuckling at this thought he pulled on his pants and put on his red jacket. Slipping into his shoes ever so casually, he gathered all of his stuff and went out of the room to retrieve his Pokemon.

Nurse Joy handed him back his Pokemon with a gleeful smile on her face and wished him luck on his journey. Red nodded his head to her and took back his Pokemon. With that he walked out of the PokeCenter to continue on his journey.

It did not take him long to reach the outskirts of the city. The map that his mother had packed into his bag said that he should head north to get to Pewter City, where the first gym was. Continuing his path, he ended up seeing the beginning of a forest.

"Viridian Forest" Red read aloud from the map. "I guess there must be plenty of Pokemon in there." Red said to no one in particular. He walked into the forest with a bounce in his step.

Red quickly found out that the forest was swarming with Pokemon. He found Caterpies, Weedles, Metapods, and Kakunas within minutes of entering the forest. He had easily captured a Caterpie for himself, sending out his trustworthy Pidgey which made quick work of the bug Pokemon. He was glad that he had captured the worm, but he wanted to capture a rare Pokemon.

Just then, he spotted it. A little yellow mouse was eating berries. Red pulled out his Pokedex.

"Pikachu, the yellow electric mouse Pokemon." Dex chimed. "They are very mischievous creatures and enjoy zapping people with their electric tails. Girls are enamored by this fluffy yellow creature." With that being said, the Pokedex turned itself off.

Having finished eating, the rodent looked up and stared at Red in surprise. It quickly bolted without a second thought.

"Wait" Red yelled out the top of his lungs, but it was too late; the Pikachu had vanished from his sight. Red groaned to himself in agony; he had found a rare Pokemon and he had managed to lose it without even battling it.

"Hahaha" A voice laughed. "You'll have to do more than that if you want to catch a Pikachu." Red turned around and looked at the person who was laughing. It was a kid with a sunhat and a butterfree net.

"Who are you?" Red asked inquisitively blushing from having been laughed at.

"My name is Chris, the bug Catcher." Chris answered. "I have traveled this forest many a day and have captured many of the bug Pokemon in this forest. I see from your actions that you are a Pokemon trainer. Therefore, I must challenge you to a battle!"

"A battle" Red replied a little stunned from the request, but quickly becoming agile again "Yeah I accept your challenge!" he said.

"Great," The bug catcher responded enthusiastically. "Go Weedle." Chris sent out a yellow worm like creature with a stinger on its tail and forehead.

"Go Pidgey" Red yelled and released his Pokemon into battle.

"Pidgeyah" the bird cryed in enthusiasm.

"Pidgey use gust" Red called out. The bird flapped its wings in an intense rate a created a wall of wind which encompassed the poor Weedle. Weedle was sucked up into the attack and quickly fainted.

"Grrrrr…." The Bug Catcher muttered in anger. "I guess I went too easy on you. Go Beedril avenge your comrade". A giant bee appeared from its Pokeball. It had an intimidating look in its eyes along with two giant stingers on its arms.

"Beedril use twinneedle" The Catcher yelled. Beedril swirled to Pidgey, who was able to avoid the first strike, but was hit with the second.

"Pidge" Pidgey let out a weak cry after the hit and promptly fainted. Despite losing the battle, Red was filled with pride for the effort that Pidgey had made.

"You did great Pidgey." Red said as he talked to his fainted Pokemon "Have some rest, you earned it." He put the Pokemon back in its ball.

"Fool" The bug catcher chortled. "You stand no chance against me and the awesome power of my superior Beedril". His Beedril flapped its wings and plunged his stingers into a tree in response to its trainer's comments.

"We'll see about that." Red retorted in a defiant manner. "Let's go Charmander".

"Charmander, Char." Charmander puffed up his chest and prepared for battle.

"That little lizard, it stands no chance against my Beedril." The bug catcher stated as if it were fact. "Beedril show that lizard up with poison sting." Beedril fired from its stinger and hit Charmander square in the jaw. Charmander stumbled from the hit, but was able to recover. "Your Charmander is lucky Red." The bug catcher said calmly. "It looks like your Charmander wasn't poisoned from that attack, but it will all be over very soon. Beedril use twineedle". Beedril pumped itself up for the attack and sprung toward the defenseless Charmander.

"Charmander quick us ember" Red yelled out in a frenzied way. Charmander responded to his trainer's command and shot balls of fire at the incoming bee. Both hits landed square. Dust was brought up from the air and neither Red nor the Bug Catcher could see what had happened.

When the dust settled both of the Pokemon were still standing, however they were both very exhausted. The one who would land the next hit would more than likely win the battle.

"Charmander use Scratch" Red commanded.

"Beedril use tackle" The Bug Catcher yelled.

Both of the Pokemon charged toward each other and both of their attacks landed cleanly. They both fell down from the attacks. Both of their trainers were urging their Pokemon to get up and continue fighting. Responding to Red's kind words of encouragement, Charmander was able to get up while Beedril fainted. Red had beaten the Bug Catcher.

Chris was stunned. He had won twelve straight battles before this rookie had beaten him. He recollected himself and walked away from the battlefield. Red was too busy celebrating his first victory with his Charmander to even notice that he had left.

"Chu, Chu, Chu" The Pikachu had returned to its spot.

"Pikachu" Red said, gazing at the Pokemon in awe.

"Pika Pika" The Pikachu said, wagging its tail and getting on all fours.

"Char Char Charmander Char" Charmander said to his trainer.

"Pikachu wants to battle after seeing us beat that Beedril" Red asked his Pokemon. Charmander nodded his head. Red nodded his head in agreement and sprayed Charmander with a potion. "Okay Charmander here we go use ember on Pikachu".

Charmander shot flames at the rodent who evaded most of the shots and fired a bolt of electricity at the lizard. Charmander was struck by the thundershock and took some damage. The Pikachu seized this opportunity by striking the Charmander with its tail. Red took note of how its tail glowed silver when it hit his Pokemon. The battle continued in this way; Charmander sending flame at his opponent, and Pikachu shooting bolts of electricity. When Pikachu looked like it had sustained enough damage to be caught, Red threw a Pokeball at it. Pikachu was captured in the ball.

One shake. Two shakes. Oh it was so close. Pikachu had escaped from the ball.

"Pika Pika" Pikachu yelled, not happy about being contained in a ball, sent a blast of electricity at Red. Luckily Red was able to dodge it in time. Charmander was angered at this action and scratched Pikachu right in the face. Pikachu was knocked off his feet. Red took the initiative and threw another Pokeball.

One shake. Two shakes. Three Shakes. Pikachu was caught.

"We caught a Pikachu!" Red yelled in excitement while jumping up and down. Charmander looked happily at his trainer, also excited, but exhausted from his fight. Red was starting to become more confident in his abilities as a trainer. He put his Pokemon back into its Pokeball and walked through the forest. He eventually reached the clearing. Once he exited the forest, he saw Pewter city right ahead.

'There it is Pewter City'. Red thought. 'My first gym battle awaits'. Red couldn't contain his excitement as he bolted from the edge of the forest to the stone city waiting ahead.


	3. Chapter 3 Brock: Master of Rock

Pokemon Red

Chapter 3: Brock, Master of Rock

Red walked into the Pokemon Gym. It was pitch black inside. Then the lights flickered on slowly, revealing an arena filled with boulders. A tall, buff man was sitting in the middle of the arena meditating. He wore only white karate pants. His eyes were closed, and he looked perfectly relaxed. Red stared in awe at this man's concentration and feuded with himself over whether to disturb this peaceful scene. However his internal grappling was set aside when this man sprung up from his set position and looked straight at him.

"Hello challenger". The man stated calmly in a gruff voice. "My name is Brock, master of Rock Pokemon".

"Hi". Red called back. The acoustics in the room amplified his voice enough that shouting was unnecessary. "I challenge you to a Pokemon battle".

"Well then". Brock replied, turning around and walking to the edge of the arena. "I accept your challenge". With that being said, Brock pulled out a Pokeball and tossed it onto the field. From this capsule, a boulder looking Pokemon with arms emerged, emitting a tough sounding cry and smashing a rock next to it.

"Wow" Red stated in astonishment. "I've never seen a Pokemon like that before". Red quickly pulled out his Pokedex.

"Geodude, the Rock Pokemon" Dex communicated. "Many of them live in the mountains. Their tough exterior makes them perfect defenders in battle. They will crush rocks for fun and even lift human weights. There have been reports of Geodude lifting their trainers up into the air". Dex finished its statement and powered off.

"Geodude also can do a few more impressive actions, but I'll let you figure that out". Brock chuckled. "Okay trainer send out your Pokemon".

"Pikachu, I choose you!" Red shouted, his voice echoing throughout the arena. Pikachu burst out of its Pokeball and surveyed its surroundings, taking note of its opponent it recklessly charged at it.

"Wait Pikachu!" Red yelled panic stricken. He knew this wasn't going to work out well.

"Geodude use rock throw". Brock commanded his pokemon, arms folded with eyes staring intently at the fight occurring.

"Geo, Geo" Geodude bellowed and chucked a rock straight at Pikachu. Pikachu was hit, unable to avoid the attack. Geodude let out a cry of fervor and hit his chest with his hands. Pikachu took a lot of damage from the attack, but was still ready to battle.

"Pikachu use iron tail". Red ordered his Pokemon, knowing that thundershock would have no effect on the part ground type Pokemon. Pikachu's tail glowed. He quickly went up to Geodude and smacked him square in the jaw. Geodude staggered and fell to the ground, but it quickly got back up.

"Let's finish this Pikachu," Red yelled with anticipation "use another iron tail" Pikachu gathered itself and prepared for another attack.

"Not so fast," Brock interjected "Geodude use self-destruct". Geodude became engulfed in a ball of light.

"Pikachu, get out of there" Red screamed at his Pokemon, but it was too late. Geodude had self-destructed, and the whole arena had become engulfed in smoke. When the dust cleared, both of the Pokemon had fainted. Both trainers returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and tossed another Pokemon out.

"This is it trainer". Brock nonchalantly said. "If you beat my Onix here, you'll earn the boulder badge".

Red barely heard Brock's words as he stared in amazement at the creature in front of him. A thirty foot long snake that looked like a rock was gazing down at him and his Charmander. It let out a resilient roar and slammed its tail down hard on the ground. Red's curiosity was prodded by this amazing creature and again pulled out his Pokedex for information.

"Onix, the rock snake Pokemon". The dex chimed. "It normally spends most of its time borrowing underground. It also appears in deep caves. As a group they are used by humans as lightning rods and are very helpful in construction matters".

"Roar!" The Onix bellowed.

"We can do this Charmander". Red yelled encouraging to his intimidated Pokemon. "Use scratch".

Charmander rushed to get a hit on the Onix, but the massive creature moved its hulking tail and swatted at Charmander with it. Charmander was sent flying to the metal wall of the arena, and was knocked unconscious on impact.

"Good Job Onix". Brock said gratefully to his Pokemon. "You have a lot to learn Kid". Brock stated to his defeated challenger. "The types that are effective against Rock type Pokemon are water and grass. The trainers that pick up Squirtle and Bulbasaur eventually are able to overcome me. However, no one has ever beaten me with a Charmander as their starter". Brock then changed his course. "I've got to hand it to you though, using iron tail with that Pikachu was an impressive strategy. You have to think like that in order to beat my Onix kid". Brock chuckled to himself and walked out of the arena. Red was upset at the loss, but was determined to continue training in order to beat Brock and become the first person with a Charmander to accomplish that feat.

The next day, Red woke up from his bed in the Pewter City Pokemon Center bright and early. He rose from his bed and started to do jumping jacks and stretching. He wanted to beat Brock badly and earn his first gym badge. Yesterday's defeat had brought him down for a little bit, but it had gave him new motivation to get better and become stronger with his Pokemon.

Red charged out of his room and decided to give Professor Oak a call from one of the video phones in the PokeCenter. Red sat down at one of the stations and punched in Oak's number. Red watched the screen buffer until Oak's face appeared on the screen. Oak waved at Red and picked up his own phone.

"Hello Red" The Professor greeted. "How are you?"

"I'm good" Red said. "I'm in Pewter City right now. I fought Brock yesterday, but I was unable to beat him. He self-destructed his Geodude, and his Onix beat my Charmander with one strike".

"That's alright" Professor Oak replied consolingly. "I can't remember the last time a trainer that picked Charmander was able to beat Brock. Rock types are notoriously bad match ups for fire Pokemon. I know you have potential though Red. You just need to train, and you'll end up defeating Brock".

"Yeah I'm feeling better already." Red said with a smile. "Also I've already caught four pokemon; a Pidgey, a Pikachu, a Rattata, and a Caterpie".

"Wow." Professor Oak remarked in astonishment. "It looks like you'll complete the Pokedex in no time flat. It's amazing that you were able to catch a Pokemon as rare as Pikachu. Those are notoriously hard to find. That reminds me….," Oak uttered scratching his hair and then smiling fondly "Blue has also caught a lot of Pokemon. He was able to catch a Pinsir and both the male and female Nidoran". Oak remarked with pride in his voice.

"That's great." Red responded. Although those words were not the first that came to his mind he was glad that Professor Oak was proud of his grandson. It was a sort of relationship that he desired since he was never able to meet his father.

"Oh yes I forgot to tell you." Oak said with urgency in his voice. "One of my assistants, Derek, is in Pewter City with a package for you. He said that he was going to go see the museum today. You may be able to catch him if you go there".

"Of course Professor," Red replied, wondering what was inside the package. "I'll go search for him. Good-bye Professor". Red hung up the phone and sprinted toward the museum.

The museum entrance fee was for five dollars, but the cost was worth it. There were so many fossils of ancient Pokemon and rockets that were sent into space. Red marveled at all of these items. He always loved to go into exhibits and learn about what was inside. As he continued through the gallery, his mind wandered to finding Derek. Luckily for him, he saw a man wearing a lab coat staring intently at a Pokemon fossil. Red assumed that it must be the man he was looking and walked up to him. Red politely waited for the man to take notice of him, but he was too absorbed in the fossil. Red got impatient and decided to speed up the process by coughing softly, no response. He proceeded to cough louder this time, but still no response from the man. He sighed. He guessed that he had to actively interrupt him.

"Hello!" Red hollered at the top of his voice, startling the man "Are you Professor Oak's assistant?" The man recollected himself from his slightly frightened state and began to interact with Red.

"Yes I am" The man replied. "My name is Derek. Are you Red?"

"Yeah I'm Red." Red responded. "Professor Oak said that you had a package for me".

"Indeed I do." Derek calmly stated. "I have it at the PokeCenter. Come on let's go get it". Derek beckoned for Red to follow him, walking down the stairs of the museum to the exit. Red followed him with excitement.

When they reached the Pokemon Center, Derek went into his room in order to retrieve the package. Red sat at a table humming a tune to himself. He always tried to occupy himself when he was waiting in order that he did not become too impatient. Soon enough, Derek arrived at the table with a package in his arm. He placed it carefully on the table.

"I don't know what is in there," Derek passively remarked "but the only thing that I know is that it is from your mom".

Red grabbed the package and opened it with anticipation. Inside of the box was a brand new pair of running shoes. They had a red and white stripped pattern with blue laces. He pulled them from the box and tried them on. He walked around in them, a perfect fit.

"These are great." Red commented. "Thank you for bringing them to me" Red said to Derek and gave him a appreciatory smile.

"It wasn't a problem." Derek responded.

"Can you help me with something?" Red inquired politely.

"What is it?" Derek asked intrigued by what Red had to say to him.

"I want advice on how to beat Brock." Red replied with a pleading look in his eyes.

"Oh." Derek chuckled. "That's all. I thought you were going to ask me something different." Derek continued laughing to himself. Red unaware of what was so funny to him. "Of course I can help. I can teach your Charmander a new move that is effective against rock type Pokemon".

"Wow you can do that?" Red asked.

"Yes it's a steel type move called metal claw. It will be super-effective against Brock's army of rock type Pokemon and will also on occasion raise the attack power of your Pokemon". Derek answered Red's question.

"That sounds great." Red commented.

"Let's go out to Route two in order to train." Derek said.

Derek turned around, and Red followed him out of the city. Route two was very similar to Route one; a grassy field and a lot of tall grass with wild Pokémon lurking inside. When they reached a certain point, Derek sat down on a boulder and told Red to call out his Charmander. Red threw Charmander out of its Pokeball.

"Alright. Let's get started." Derek stated with a sense of excitement in his voice. "Tell your Charmander to use scratch on the boulder that I'm sitting on". Red nodded his head and promptly looked at his Pokemon.

"Charmander use scratch on that boulder." Red commanded his Pokemon. Derek got off of the boulder as Charmander landed his claws on the boulder. Derek told Red to keep commanding Charmander to keep using Scratch. They waited long into the afternoon; then Charmander's claws glowed silver and expanded, scratching the boulder. This created a much deeper mark then the previous scratch attacks.

"There it is." Derek said with satisfaction. "Now tell your Charmander to hit the boulder again". Red again commanded his Charmander to use Metal Claw. Charmander was able to land another hit and another hit on the boulder with its new move. It got excited at its accomplishment and jumped up and down in the air. Red pumped his right arm into the air, proud of the progress that he had made with his Pokemon.

"Now there is only one thing left to do." Derek commented. "We have to observe Brock in order to find out his weakness".

Derek and Red walked back towards Pewter City. They both headed straight for the Pewter Gym. When Red was about to walk straight into the gym, Derek pulled him away from the door and into the neighboring bushes. He put a finger to his lips, motioning to Red to stay quiet. Both of them sneakily crept to the house that was behind the gym. They saw a window and both of them slowly moved towards it. They peered through the door and saw Brock giving a massage to a woman. They were both talking very suggestively to each other. Red wanted to keep watching, but Derek pulled him away from the window and back to the Pokemon Center. Derek was blushing in embarrassment as he wished Red luck in his next battle with Brock and departed. Red went back to his room and slept, night had crept onto him very quickly.

He had a very interesting dream. He was in a field. He seemed to be walking endlessly until the grass grew to a tremendous size that engulfed him. Then the grass turned into a bunch of Grimers. Red was swallowed whole by these Pokemon. It all faded to black. Next, he was in a dojo with Brock, practicing karate. Brock was schooling him easily. Red was thrown to the ground easily by Brock and was pinned to the ground with Brock's foot. Red couldn't move. He was pinned. Everything again faded to black as he woke up in a cold sweat. He hurriedly ran to the bathroom and threw water onto his face. He looked up at the clock; it was two o'clock in the morning. He sighed and went back to sleep, pulling the blanket over his body.

Red yawned and again woke up. He looked at the clock. It was ten minutes to ten. He wasn't surprised that he did not wake up early as he had woken up during the night. He showered and put on his clothes; he was ready to face Brock.

He walked into the Pewter Gym with a cocky swagger. There he was again, Brock sitting on the floor of the arena meditating. Red smiled inwardly to himself; just like two days ago, but this time it would be different. He would beat Brock today.

"Hello challenger." Brock greeted him humbly. Today it will be a one-on-one Pokemon battle. It's all or nothing". Red looked at him in a confused manner. Brock coughed awkwardly and explained that his Geodude was lifting weights right now and was unable to be present. Red was a little surprised at the idea of a Geodude working out, but shook the thought from his mind and summoned his Charmander into battle. Brock sent out his trusty Onix. Onix let out the obligatory roar and stared down at Charmander, who also locked eyes with the massive creature.

"Onix use rock polish." Brock declared in an amped up voice. Onix glowed and became shiny. Its speed doubled. "Now Onix use iron tail." Brock yelled to his Pokemon. Onix's tail glowed silver. Charmander was able to dodge the sweeping attack from the humongous Pokemon and started to climb up the rock snake's body.

"Charmander use metal claw." Red commanded. Charmander's claws turned silver, and it slashed Onix straight in the face. Charmander jumped down from the creature as it twirled around in confusion from the hit. Charmander took this time to hide from the Onix.

"Onix, Charmander is over there use dragonbreath on that rock over there." Brock yelled. Onix roared and breathed fire from its mouth. The rock was hit that Charmander was hiding behind, and he sustained a ton of damage.

"Now Onix use bind while Charmander is down." Brock ordered his Pokemon. Onix wrapped its tail around Charmander in a flash and started to squeeze the hit points out of Charmander. Charmander squirmed and struggled under the pressure.

"Charmander hit Onix with ember." Red yelled in a desperate attempt to unsnare his Pokemon. Charmander obeyed his command and shot fire from his mouth directly onto Onix's body. Onix was stung by the shot and retracted itself from Charmander. Charmander was now free to strike.

"Charmander jump up and use metal claw." Red commanded, confident after his Charmander had been freed from its bind. Charmander jumped up and struck Onix right between the eyes. Onix let out a roar of pain and recoiled back to its side of the field. Brock's brow furrowed in irritation.

"Onix use sandstorm." Brock hollered to his Pokemon. Onix let out a gruff cry and the dirt around him was kicked up; Neither Red nor Charmander were able to see the Onix. "Onix use Dig." Brock yelled. As the sandstorm disappeared, Red only saw a hole in the ground. The hairs on his next stood up, and he started to sweat. Charmander was growing nervous as he looked around unable to find his opponent. Brock was standing with a poker face on; arms crossed, intently watching and waiting.

Red was beginning to panic, Charmander was a sitting duck. There was nothing he could do to stop the inevitable rampage of the roaring Onix.

"Don't worry Charmander!" Red called out in an attempt to mollify the worries of his Pokemon. Charmander heard his trainer and began to calm down. Brock smirked; the ground had begun to shake. Red and Charmander were completely taken off guard from this.

As a result of Onix's tunneling underground, Charmander was unable to keep his balance and fell to the floor of the arena. That was when Onix struck. Onix rose out of the ground and flung Charmander straight up into the air.

"Now Onix, use dragonbreath." Brock yelled, hoping that this attack would conclude the battle. Onix breathed flames which Charmander had no opportunity to avoid. The lizard was consumed in flames. When Charmander fell to the ground it looked like the fight was over, everyone looked on, wondering what was going to occur.

Charmander stood up slowly. Because of the hit, Charmander had lost a lot of Health and was paralyzed. Charmander gritted its teeth in frustration and tried to muster up all of its strength for one final attack.

"Charmander use metal claw." Red yelled unsure of whether Charmander could land a hit on the hulking Onix. Charmander staggered, and Onix dropped its guard at this moment. Then Charmander leapt and landed another clean hit on Onix. Onix and Brock were equally stunned by this attack. Onix slumped over and fainted. Red had improbably won. Red returned Charmander to its Pokeball, who was very eager for some rest after that grueling battle. Brock lowered his head and chuckled to himself; he couldn't believe it. A Charmander had finally defeated his Onix.

"Congratulations trainer." Brock stated calmly as he walked toward the victorious Red. "I present to you the Boulder Badge as a sign of your victory." He placed a small, metal object in Red's hand. Brock gave Red a smile and calmly went back to his meditation. Red felt ecstatic; the day was his. Red walked out of the building with a renewed vigor. 'Now I'll go to the next gym.' Red decided. 'The gym leader of Cerulean City, here I go.' Red walked down the stairs of the gym and headed for the next route.


	4. Chapter 4 Mt Moon

Pokemon Red

Chapter 4: Mt. Moon

Red encountered many trainers on his way to Mt. Moon. There was a young kid with a furious Ekans that Pidgey was able to pluck from the ground. Another challenger was a young lass with a Venonat; Red's Charmander made quick work of it. Red also met a bug catcher he had seen in the Viridian Forest. Charmander was able to scorch his Metapod with its ember attack. Speaking of Metapod, Red's Caterpie evolved into a Metapod. It formed a cacoon of silk string around itself, forming Metapod. Metapod was less active than Caterpie; eyes unblinking and unmoving. Red just kept it in its Pokeball mostly.

Red had four Pokemon on his team; Charmander, Pikachu, Pidgey, and Metapod. He had left Rattata in the care of Professor Oak.

There was a notable difference in the air pressure as Red approached the entrance of Mt. Moon. It became more difficult to breathe. Red braced himself as he entered the cave; ready to find new Pokemon. The cave was damp and dark. Red sent out both his Pikachu and Charmander to light up the path; Charmander with the fire on his tail, and Pikachu with its flash move. With them, Red could see much better than he could with his own two eyes.

Within minutes of entering the cave, Red encountered a cloud of Zubat. They were hanging from the ceiling. Pikachu, terrified by these creatures, let out a burst of electricity. The cloud of Zubat, awoken and irritated, rushed at Red and his Pokemon. Red, Pikachu, and Charmander had no choice but to run as fast as they could from the wild Zubat. They chased them for what seemed like hours, but Red and his team were fortunate enough to flee from the enraged Bats. Red was breathing heavily from the unwanted exercise, along with his Pokemon. Pikachu was huffing and puffing; grateful that he had escaped the wild Zubat. Charmander was on the ground; exhausted from the running.

Red recollected himself and began to continue through the cave with his Pokemon. After some time, he encountered a trainer wearing hiking boots and a large backpack. The hiker had a walking stick and was taking a sip of water. Red and the hiker locked eyes, a sign that a battle would take place. The hiker threw out a Geodude while Red sent out Pikachu. Pikachu eventually was able to beat the rock Pokemon. The hiker walked away, grumbling about thugs deeper in the cave. Red heard these words and became cautious. As he walked into the lower levels of the cave, he found a man in a black uniform and cap.

"Move it kid." The intimidating man with a red 'R' on his chest ordered.

"No." Red replied defiantly.

"Then I'll move you myself." The man shouted. "Go Zubat." He sent out a blue bat with purple wings. It screeched and flapped its wings.

"Pidgey fight." Red declared. Pidgey was released from its ball. They both flew up in the air.

"Zubat use wing attack." The man ordered.

"Pidgey use wing attack." Red retaliated. Both Pokemon rushed at each other and tried to land a hit on the other with their wings. It was a dog fight in the air. After each landing a few attacks, the Pokemon returned to their trainers. Next, the man sent out a Diglett while Red sent out Charmander. The man ordered Diglett to charge at Charmander. Charmander dodged the attack and knocked the Diglett out with a well-placed strike. The man put Diglett back in its Pokeball and growled at Red.

"Don't mess with Team Rocket kid." The man hissed and left. Red scratched his head; 'Team Rocket?' he had never heard of it. He shrugged off this peculiar feeling and marched on, but he stayed on his guard.

Unfortunately for Red, he found more people with the same funky uniform. One of them had a whip and a Sandshrew. One after another, Red eliminated the Rocket grunts. The grunts threw out hordes of poison Pokemon, but Red was able to overcome them. Close to the end of the cave, Red encountered one final Rocket member. This one looked stronger than the others.

"Why are all of you here?" Red asked.

"We are here to collect the rare Pokémon in this cave." The Rocket member said. "That includes the trainers' Pokémon. I'll beat you, and then I'll take your Pokémon." The Rocket member looked on at Red, trying to intimidate him.

"I won't let that happen," Red shouted at the Rocket "It's wrong to take other people's Pokémon. Stop intruding on this cave!"

"No way; a kid like you will not stop me. Go Arbok." The Rocket said. He threw out a purple snake with a face pattern on its chest. The snake glared down upon Red. Even though Red was intimidated by the fearsome Pokémon, he sent out Pikachu in retaliation.

"Arbok use glare." The Rocket roared. Arbok glanced down on Pikachu with a terrifying look which paralyzed the poor Pokémon. "Now use wrap." The snake slithered towards the stunned Pikachu and wrapped its tail around it, squeezing it in a painful way. Pikachu cried in pain. Arbok derived pleasure from the sound of pain that Pikachu was emitting and ensnared it harder. Pikachu let out more yelps, completely vulnerable. The Rocket was laughing at the display, letting his Arbok do as it pleased.

"Pikachu use thundershock" Red desperately cried. Pikachu obeyed his trainer's call and launched a bolt of electricity from its cheeks. This was enough for Pikachu to break free from Arbok's hold. Arbok recoiled and hissed at its prey.

"Arbok use bite." The Rocket declared irritated by Pikachu's resilience. The snake sunk to the ground and sped towards its opponent. It opened its jaw and tried to eat the poor mouse. The Pikachu responded with another bolt of electricity. Arbok was hit; after that Pikachu struck Arbok on the snout with a well-placed iron tail. Arbok was knocked unconscious. The Rocket pulled his Pokémon back into the ball and glared straight at Red.

"You won't get away with this!" The Rocket shouted. He fled. Red had saved the cave from this threat. Red continued walking, trying to find the end of the cave. His descent into the cave turned into an ascent. He found a surprise waiting for him. A scrawny looking man with glasses and long, greasy black hair was pacing around two objects. He took notice of Red's presence and addressed him.

"These rare fossils are mine." The man yelled.

"Who are you?" Red asked.

"My name is Sheldon, I am a scientist." Sheldon said "And these fossils are my property. If you don't leave, I have no choice but to fight you in a Pokémon battle."

"I need to get to Cerulean City, and the only exit is this way." Red replied to this man's statements.

The obscure figure grabbed a Pokeball and sent out a magnet like Pokémon with one beady eye. Red pulled out his Pokedex for an explanation.

"Magnemite, the electric magnet Pokémon. Being a steel and electric type Pokémon, it has offensive and defensive capabilities. It merges with three other Magnemite to form Magneton. This curious evolution process is still being studied by Scientists." Dex stated.

"Alright a steel type Pokémon," Red mused "I'll guess I'll just throw out Charmander then." Red yelled. He threw out the fire lizard. The orange creature stood up in the cave and let out a burst of fire from its mouth.

"Charmander use ember on that hulking magnet!" Red yelled. Charmander spurted flames from its mouth. After a few hits, Magnemite was knocked out. Sheldon got irritated from this and sent out his next Pokémon, a hulking blob of slime. Once again, Red pulled out his Pokémon to investigate this strange thing in front of him.

"Grimer the toxic waste Pokémon," Dex chimed "it hovers around dumps and power plants. They love to also live in toxic bogs. They love to cover everything in their horrific odor and slime. These Pokémon are rounded up in the city and brought to uninhabited areas due to their raucous behavior." Dex turned itself off.

The Grimer howled and shot sludge at Charmander. Charmander's face was covered in toxic waste. Charmander tried to get the gook off of his face, but Grimer had already made its move. It covered Charmander with its slime, swallowing Charmander in its own body. Charmander couldn't take the poisonous odor and fainted, unable to continue battling.

Red gritted in frustration and was about to call out Pikachu to continue the battle, but Metapod popped out of its Pokeball.

"A puny Metapod!" Sheldon hollered in laughter. His Grimer also chuckled and sped toward the defenseless cocoon. Grimer picked it up with its slimy hand and slowly ingested it. Red watched in horror as his Pokémon was turning into food for the mucky beast. Sheldon was laughing his butt off at this moment, unaware that inside his Grimer, a glowing light was forming. Metapod was evolving! Grimer started chocking and out of its mouth flowed a newly evolved Butterfree. Butterfree flapped its wings and sprayed Grimer with a string shot attack.

"Grimer use acid armor." Sheldon ordered, still convinced that he had the battle won. Grimer's acidic skin melted the silky string covering itself. It roared in rage and flung more sludge at Butterfree. Butterfree flapped its wings, avoiding most of the sludge. Butterfree fired a wave from its antenna. Grimer was hit with a confusion attack. Grimer slumped in Confusion as Butterfree hit it with another attack, silver wind. A gust of wind flew behind Grimer and hit it straight on. Grimer slumped, completely unconscious. Sheldon groaned in aggravation while Red petted his Butterfree. Deciding to protect his precious fossils, Sheldon charged straight toward Red. Red braced himself for a fight, but Sheldon tripped on his own untied shoe lace.

Red was relieved as Sheldon slumped over in pain.

"Fine!" he yelled clutching his leg. "You can take one of the fossils as a prize for beating me. Next time though…" He wagged his finger at Red, "you better prepare yourself." Sheldon ended up fainting along with his Pokémon. Red wanted to help the unconscious man, but decided it was a better idea to live him alone since he had just tried to attack him. Red walked toward the two fossils. One was shaped like a dome; the other was shaped like a helix. Red ended up taking the helix fossil and putting it in his pack. Red felt great; he had defeated Team Rocket and had beaten a crazy scientist.

Red exited the cave. 'Finally, sunlight' Red thought to himself. He stood there as sunlight poured onto his skin. He felt warmed by the sun; the cave was so dank and cold. The exit of the cave was not where Cerulean City started; he still had to walk a good five miles before he got there. He saw a guy training in karate clothes; the man offered to teach one of his Pokemon Mega kick, a powerful move. Red decided to allow Charmander to learn this move. Feeling more confident than before, Red charged toward Cerulean City.

 _Author's note: Hey guys. If you liked the story, don't forget to favorite or review. The next chapter will revolve around Red's battle with Misty. What Pokemon would you like to see her use?_


	5. Chapter 5 Misty's Mystic Water Pokemon!

Pokemon Red

Chapter 5: Misty's Mystic Water Pokemon!

Cerulean City was beautiful this time of year. The trees were a brilliant green; the roads were clean and silky. Red inhaled deeply, taking in the scenery. He had climbed out of a dark, damp cave into this beautiful landscape. Red rushed into the Pokemon Center in order to heal his Pokemon. He met Nurse Joy; each Pokemon Center had a Nurse Joy, apparently they all were related somehow. She greeted him with a smile as she took his Pokeballs. Red got his room key from her and walked to his room.

Once he got there, he put the key in and opened the door. He collapsed on the bed in front of him, relaxing on the comfortable mattress. Red stood back up and undressed; even though he didn't particularly want to. It had been a long day. He clothes were all sweaty and dirty. They stuck to him as he took them off, more like peeled them off from his skin. He decided that he was too grimy to go to sleep.

'That Grimer must have swallowed me whole too, the way I am.' Red thought to himself. He grabbed soap and shampoo from his bag and walked into the bathroom. Next, he started to tinker with the taps until he got the right temperature for him, which was normally a really warm temperature. He jumped in the shower and almost let out a moan of approval as the water sprayed onto him. He began to clean all the muck off of himself. After he had finished washing off all the dirt and grime, Red turned off the shower and pushed the curtain to the side. He dried himself with a white towel. The moment he felt dry; he wrapped the towel around his waist. He went back into the bedroom and grabbed his toothbrush. He proceeded to brush his teeth, which felt grimy and sticky. He particularly hated the feeling of crusty teeth. Once he was finished with his ritual, he threw the towel to the floor and grabbed a pair of pajamas from his bag. He pulled it out; it was yellow with orange cyclones on it. He slipped into them; they felt warm and snug. His lower body appreciated this feeling. Red jumped under the covers and the bed and fell asleep quickly, worn out from his long day.

Forgetting to close the shades before he went to sleep, the sunlight shined through the window and woke Red up in the morning. He desperately tried to throw his blanket over his head and continue his sleep, but it was too much of a distraction. Groaning, he pulled himself out of bed. He felt sweaty and decided to go take another shower. This time it was a lot colder than the previous one. Once he got out of the bathroom, he put on his attire for the day; a striped red and white t-shirt, his regular jacket over that, blue boxers, jeans, socks, and his running shoes. He picked up his backpack and went to get his Pokemon.

He approached the counter and a round, pink Pokemon greeted him. Red was not sure what Pokemon this was so he pulled out his Pokedex.

"Chansey, the nurturing Pokemon," Dex lectured "They are very rare in the wild, most trainers only see them in Pokemon Centers helping Nurse Joy. Their eggs have healing properties and are sold on the black market for a very high price." Dex finished its statement and turned off.

"Chansey, Chansey." Chansey said to Red, smiling and holding out a tray of Pokeballs.

'These must be mine' Red thought.

"Thank you Chansey." Red gratefully said to the pink creature.

"Chan, Chan." Chansey spoke, clapping its hands in joy.

Red exited the Pokemon Center and practically ran to the gym. He was excited and wanted to battle the gym leader immediately. However, when he reached the gym, he found out that it was closed. There was a note on the door, "Will be back at two o'clock, gone fishing." Red read the sign aloud.

'Gone fishing.' Red thought, fuming in his head. He wanted to battle now. He sighed and turned around, figuring that he would come back later.

Red ended up meandering around the city, trying to keep himself entertained. After about an hour later, he decided to go outside the city and look for wild Pokemon. He followed a trail that led to Mt. Moon; the one that he had followed yesterday to Cerulean City. While walking, he noticed a lake. Glad that he brought a swimsuit with him; Red hid behind a nearby bush and began to change. When he emerged from the bush, he was wearing only a deep blue swimsuit with a Psyduck printed on the back. It wasn't his favorite one; his mom had bought it for him. He had a crimson one that had a flame pattern, but he had grabbed this one first. He didn't really care because no one seemed to be around.

Red strapped on a pair of goggles and dived into the lake; the cool water felt so good on his skin. He was an avid swimmer; he swam at the pond near Pallet Town when he was a kid. He swam there pretty much every day. One day while he was swimming, Blue was also fishing. Blue thought that it would be hilarious if he hooked Red. Blue aimed for Red and hooked his shorts. Not going to waste this opportunity, he reeled them in. Red was stuck skinning dipping while Blue sat there and laughed. He even had the gall to dangle his swim trunks in front of him. Red was in the pond, covering himself and blushing. He begged Blue to give him his shorts back. Blue denied Red's pleas and hopped on his bike, going back to Pallet laughing. Red waited until dusk before he emerged from the pond. He ran home as quickly as he possibly could. He was freezing and his skin had absorbed a lot of water from the pond. Thankfully, his mom made a hot bath for him when he came home. He never told his mom what happened; he was too embarrassed.

After reliving that uncomfortable situation, Red took laps around the lake. Exercise always had a way of calming effect on him. Everything was flowing perfectly; the weather and the water felt great to him. He swam toward a side of the lake; not knowing that someone was there already.

An orange haired girl wearing short jeans with a small yellow top was fishing. She had red suspenders attaching the two articles of clothing. She was humming quietly to herself. This day had mostly been a flop for her; all she had caught was a bunch of Magikarp. She reeled then in and proceeded to throw them back. They were so pathetic; the way they flopped miserably on the ground. She sighed; she wished she could catch something more interesting. Suddenly, she had something on the hook. It felt heavier than the bunch of Magikarp she had wrangled in. She felt little resistance as she rolled in her catch; it got lighter and lighter. Misty pulled harder and harder until her catch appeared in front of her. It was a flat Psyduck? Misty cocked her head in confusion, looking at the strange thing in front of her. Actually, it was a pair of swim trunks! She blushed to herself looking at it. 'That must mean someone…..' she thought.

"Hey give me my trunks back!" Red shouted at her, popping his head above the water. Misty looked at the boy and thought that he was pretty cute; his hair was wet and clinging to his hair. His eyes were gleaming red in anger.

"Look what I caught." Misty said flirtatiously. Red looked at her confused.

"Give me my shorts back." Red retorted, unwilling to go up and get the trunks from her.

"Why don't you show me some more skin?" Misty asked Red, hoping that he would comply.

"What?" Red asked flabbergasted, blushing at the comment.

"Come on kid, don't deny the gym leader of Cerulean City." Misty said to Red in a sweet voice.

"You're the gym leader!" Red responded. He was completely surprised; she was about the same age as him.

"Yes, by the sound of it I guess you're a Pokemon trainer." Misty replied, grabbing his trunks and feeling the wet fabric.

"Yeah, my name is Red, and I'm from Pallet town." Red stated to her.

"I'm Misty." Misty said, smiling to Red.

"Now can you give me my shorts back?" Red asked pleadingly to her. Misty couldn't say no to the puppy dog eyes that he was making to her.

"Of course, but you have to promise to battle me at the gym." Misty said, unhooking the trunks from the fishing rod, grasping them in her fist.

"Yes, I'll battle you." Red responded.

"Well, here you go then." Misty remarked and tossed Red's shorts into the lake. Red grabbed the shorts and put them back on. He noticed a hole in them from the hook. He couldn't believe his luck; this had happened to him twice. He sighed, emerging from the lake. Misty watched him as he walked toward her. She looked at his scrawny frame; she still was interested though. There was something peculiar about him.

Red nodded to her, sizing her up. Misty smirked to herself.

'He couldn't be more obvious.' She thought. She had to stifle herself in order to stop from giggling like a schoolgirl.

"Well I better be going then." Misty said, packing up her fishing rod and hoping on her bike. She gave Red a quick wave and rode off, presumably back to Cerulean.

Red sighed. He blushed at himself in embarrassment.

'Stupid, stupid, stupid.' He thought to himself, face palming. He was blatantly checking her out; he couldn't help it. Red didn't know why, but he found her to be extremely pretty. It may have been the skimpy clothes, the toned stomach, or her creamy legs. Hey, maybe it was all three. Red hadn't seen a girl like that since Daisy Oak, Blue's sister, back in Pallet. Blue had always hated it when Red came over; Daisy would always shower him with attention. That made Blue extremely jealous. It was one of the reasons why Blue picked on him so much, he was threatened by him. One time when he came over, Daisy had gave him a kiss on the cheek. Blue got extremely jealous. He ended up giving him a wedgie before the day was done.

Red dried himself off with a towel that he had brought with him. He rubbed his hair as he contemplated the battle he would have with Misty. He got excited thinking about it. He took off his torn swim trunks and put on his regular traveling clothes. He put his cap back on; he had forgot to wear it this morning. He pulled out a Pokeball.

"Pidgey, I choose you!" Red said, throwing the Pokeball to the ground. Pidgey flew out of its Pokeball and let out a coo. "Pidgey search the sky for wild Pokemon." Red commanded. Pidgey nodded its head and flew off, on a mission from its trainer.

The day was pretty uneventful for Red. He had found countless Spearow, Ekans, and Sandshrew. He was only able to capture a Sandshrew. He wasn't really impressed by these Pokemon. He wasn't really interested in training either; his thoughts trailed by to Misty. He remembered her figure along with his silky hair. He wished he could run his hands through her hair. He sighed to himself. Walking back to Cerulean, he started to anticipate his battle with Misty with increased fervor.

Red reached the front of the gym. It was shaped mostly like an aquarium. There were statues of Dewgong on the front, smiling jollily. He chuckled to himself, looking at these silly marble figures. It brought him back when he went to the circus with his mom.

He was just three years old. The annual circus was in town. His mom had told him that he was going to have a lot of fun. Red and his mom walked into the canvas tent.

"Let's find our seats honey." Sylvia said to Red, holding his hand firmly. Red was nibbling on cotton candy that his mom had bought for him. It was half blue and half pink. It melted in his mouth; he practically gobbled it up. His mom guided him into their seats. They plopped down. Red watched, waiting for the show to start. Mr. Mimes were in the stands, selling all sorts of items. One of the Pokemon vendors asked if he wanted popcorn. Red pleaded with his mom to get him some.

"Okay dear," Sylvia gave in "but don't eat too much junk food dear, your tummy will start to ache." She paid the Mr. Mime. The Pokemon handed Red a yellow bag filled with the treat. He started to chow down on the field. Then the show began to start.

There were tons of acts; both human and Pokemon. There were foreign Pokemon; a lion and a panda were prominent among them. Red had never saw them before; he was completely amazed. One of the acts had a Dewgong juggling a ball on its nose.

"Arf, Arf, Arf." The Dewgong had said in its routine. Red was amazed by the act. He had been so impressed by this stunt that he had tried to balance a ball on his nose when he went home.

The last act was the one that he remembered the most; a strange Pokemon with spoons appeared instantly at the center of the stage, almost as if it had teleported. The crowd was in awe at this sight. The Pokemon proceed to levitate on the stage and do tricks with spoons. Eventually this Pokemon began to use its power to raise objects into the air. It had begun to juggle them. Red was watching in amazement at this strange Pokemon. It completed its act and disappeared. The entire crowd clapped at the wonderful performance. The ringleader walked onto the stage and announced that the night was over. The crowd stood up and filed out of the canvas tent. In the middle of the crowd, Red lost his mom. He cried out for her, but she was nowhere to be found. Suddenly, right in front of him, the Pokemon that had appeared on stage was in front of him. The Pokemon teleported him to a cave. It blasted him with psychic imagery. Red had suppressed what had happened because it was too terrifying. Red woke up the next morning in the middle of the field, scarred from the experience. He refused to talk to anyone for the next few weeks. To this day, he had not got over it.

Red shuddered as he walked up the steps and into the gym. Waiting for him was Misty. She smiled at him and greeted him. She beckoned him to follow her.

"I'll give you the grand tour." Misty said, throwing up her hands dramatically. She and Red walked downstairs first; their feet squeaked as they walked on the tiles.

"Our helpers just washed the place." Misty explained, brushing the back of her hand and smiling.

"It's no problem." Red responded awkwardly, hoping that Misty hadn't caught him sneaking a glance at her. She had to know that he was looking at her; she began to subtly sway at little more. This drove Red's hormones crazy; he felt like reaching out and touching her.

"This is one of the container tanks." Misty stated, pointing to a glass tank. It was lined with sand with coral and algae sticking out. Red walked up to the glass and put his hands on it, marveling at the sights inside. He saw loads of Magikarp, splashing around in the water. Their red scales were shining; they looked to be in perfect condition. Red also saw crab like Pokemon walking on the sand. He was wondering what they were.

"What are those things?" Red asked inquisitively.

"Those are Krabby," Misty explained "They normally are found near the beach. One time, a Krabby pinched my sister's leg and she freaked out. She was flailing all over the place." They both laughed at this statement. Misty guided him to another tank; this one held Pokemon that looked like oysters.

"Those Pokemon are Shellder and Cloyster." She told him. "They aren't really that interesting, but Cloyster are excellent battlers. Their defensive capabilities frustrate their opponents." She shrugged her shoulders and walked toward another tank. Red followed her, like a cat drawn to a mouse. He was ready to pounce, but then he saw something amazing; a huge dragon-like Pokemon appeared from one of the tanks. Misty noticed Red's astonishment and began to explain.

"That's a Dragonair." Misty said equally amazed by its beauty. "It actually isn't a water Pokemon; it is a dragon type. We use it in shows; people love its natural grace and beautiful moves." They move stared at its elegant body. The Dragonair put on a show for them, swirling around and dancing in the boy. It made a cry and a horde of Horsea appeared. The seahorses danced around it in a circle.

"See what I mean." Misty said to Red, eyes dilated.

"Yeah it's amazing." Red replied, taking it all in. It was the by far the most beautiful thing that he had seen on his journey. He felt like watching this mystical creature all day. Misty and Red sat there for what seemed like hours. Finally, this esoteric Pokemon finished its dance and moved away, ending the show. Red and Misty slowly walked to the top floor. They were still entranced by the previous display. They moved down a hallway until they reached a set of double doors. Misty moved to open them, motioning for Red to follow her.

Red stepped into the dark arena. With each step the lights flickered on. He couldn't believe his eyes; it was a stadium with a Pokemon arena. The arena was a pool with two floating platforms on both sides of the field.

"We use the pool for Pokemon battles and stage shows." Misty remarked. "The floating panels are for Pokemon that can't swim. You should see our shows Red; they really are wonderful. I have this cute little mermaid costume. I'll put it on for you if you like." Misty flirtatiously said while winking at Red. Red's face turned a deep crimson; he was completely in a trance.

"Let me get my Pokemon, and then we will battle Red." Misty told him while striking a pose. She walked out of the arena in order to retrieve her Pokemon. Red sat down on one of the bleachers and pulled out a Pokeball. He threw it and Pikachu emerged from the ball. Pikachu rushed toward him, and Red began to pet it. Pikachu cooed in delight from this action. He was trying to come up with a strategy to defeat Misty. After a while, he put Pikachu back into his Pokeball.

"Okay Red, I'm ready." Misty said. She had reappeared. Red almost felt his draw drop; Misty had changed into a deep blue bikini. She was also holding two Pokeballs in her hand. "This will be a two on two Pokemon battle Red. The first side to knock out the other side's Pokemon will win the battle. And if you win….." Misty leaned close to him, whispering in his ear "I'll give you something very special." Red was unable to stop the blood from flowing into his face. Misty gave him a bright smile and turned to her side of the field. Red practically glided to his side of the field.

"Goldeen, it's time to battle." Misty yelled. She threw out a koi fish like Pokemon. Red pulled out his Pokedex, but Misty beat him to it.

"There's no need for that," Misty coyly told Red, "Goldeen is the fancy fish Pokemon. It swims in ponds and easily attracts other Pokemon to its area. They lay over two hundred eggs in a mating season however only five to twenty normally hatch. Does that satiate your curiosity Red?" Misty stated to him with a wink.

"Yeah." Red responded, not really listening to anything she was saying. He was too busy marveling at Misty in her bikini. 'Snap out of it,' he thought to himself 'you'll never beat her if you can't think clearly.' Red turned his cap back and threw out a Pokeball.

"Pidgey, I choose you!" he yelled. Pidgey appeared out of its Pokeball and let out a confident call.

"Pidgey use Gust." He commanded. Pidgey flapped its wings and sent a whirl of air at Goldeen.

"Goldeen jump into the pool." Misty called to her Pokemon.

"Goldeen, Goldeen." Goldeen said while leaping into the pool, dodging the attack.

"Let's see you try and hit my Goldeen when you can't find where it lurks." Misty stated; her competitive nature showing.

"I'll figure a way," Red responded "Pidgey return."

"Pidge, pidge" Pidgey said as it was recalled into its Pokeball.

"Let's go Pikachu." Red yelled, sending out the plump little electric mouse.

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu cried.

"Awe, it's so cute." Misty cried at the sight of the Pokemon.

"Pikachu use thundershock." Red said, not waiting on Misty. Pikachu shot a bolt of electricity into the pool, frying Goldeen. Goldeen had to fly out of the water in order to avoid losing more health. It landed on the platform gracefully.

"Pikachu send another jolt Goldeen's way." Red commanded.

"Pi Pika Pi!" Pikachu crowed and launched a shock at Goldeen.

"Goldeen dodge with splash." Misty ordered. Goldeen splashed and bounced into the air, avoiding the attack.

"Now strike with drill peck." Misty said. Goldeen's horn glowed and burrowed onto the bewildered Pikachu. Pikachu was drilled and was pushed into the water.

"Goldeen finish that Pikachu off with dive." Misty yelled.

"Goldeen, Gold." Goldeen cried as it dived into the water, ready to finish the fight.

"Pikachu use thundershock!" Red hollered at the top of his voice, hoping that his Pokemon would hear him. He and Misty stared at the pool; nothing occurred for a few moments. Eventually, Goldeen appeared to surface.

"Great Goldeen!" Misty yelled with praise.

"Take a closer look Misty." Red told her.

"What?" Misty replied. She looked at Goldeen; it was knocked unconscious. Meanwhile, Pikachu reappeared on the platform, shaking off the water from its fur.

"You did great Goldeen." Misty said to her fainted Pokemon, calling it back to its Pokeball.

"Let's get this badge Pikachu!" Red yelled confidently at his mouse.

"Pika! Pika!" Pikachu cooed to its trainer.

"It's not over yet Red, Staryu it's time to dazzle." Misty cried, throwing out a great ball. A star shaped Pokemon appeared on the platform, moving gracefully. Red looked at it with confusion, wondering where its eyes and mouth were.

"This Pokemon is Staryu, the starfish Pokemon," Misty remarked "Staryu are rare in the wild. They are a prized piece in water pokemon collections. They evolve into Starmie with a water stone. Most have the ability to dance rather gracefully." She finished her statement. Red appreciated her insight.

"Thanks for the knowledge Misty." Red said.

"The pleasure is all mine Red," Misty replied "but don't forget, this battle is far from over."

"Oh I know that." Red responded confidently.

"Staryu use swift." Misty yelled. Staryu sent out beams of stars from the red circle in the center. Pikachu was unable to dodge the attack; it was struck head on.

"Pikachu use iron tail." Red shouted. Pikachu's tail glowed silver as it jumped toward Staryu.

"Staryu use rapid spin." Misty shrieked. Staryu spun around and collided head on with Pikachu. Both of their attacks hit, neither doing any damage.

"Staryu use water gun." Misty yelled. Staryu spurted out liquid from its top limb at Pikachu.

"Pikachu jump in the water." Red responded. He used the same strategy that Misty had used, jumping into the water to avoid attacks. Misty gritted her teeth, knowing that her Staryu was pinned onto the platform. It would be too risky to send it in after Pikachu. An electric attack could knock out Staryu. That is exactly what Red desired. She didn't want to make the same mistake twice.

"Staryu use iron defense." Misty said, stalling for time. 'Pikachu has to come up to breathe sooner or later.' She thought. Soon enough, Pikachu popped up from the pool in an attempt to get air.

"Staryu use swift." Misty yelled. Since swift was unavoidable, Pikachu was hit and flopped onto the platform like a fish. He even splashed around a little bit.

"Finish this battle with tackle." Misty shouted. Staryu dove into the water and appeared on the same platform as Pikachu. It was about to hit, but Pikachu set out a jolt of electricity from its cheeks. Staryu was hit.

"Use recover Staryu." Misty said. Staryu glowed as it healed itself.

"Pikachu keep firing attacks." Red commanded. Pikachu sent bolts and bolts at Staryu, eventually Staryu fell over and collapsed unconscious.

"I did it I won!" Red yelled jumping up and down along with his Pikachu.

"Congratulations Red." Misty said to him, walking over to his side of the field. "Here is the cascade badge." Misty gave him a badge shaped like a teardrop. She also gave him a technical machine. "That is water pulse. It's a powerful water move that may confuse the opponent. Also, I've got something for you." She gave Red a peck on the cheek. Red blushed for the umpteenth time that day.

"Let's go get dinner." She cooed to him.

"Sure." Red responded. Pikachu swam toward both of them. He started to cry and rubbed up against Misty's leg. Misty reached down and petted the mouse, who purred in appreciation.

"You've got yourself quite a powerful cutie there." She told Red.

"Yeah I found him in the Viridian Forest." Red responded, scratching the back of his head and smiling at her. Misty smiled back to him.

"Let me put on something more appropriate for our date." Misty remarked.

"Hey I thought it was just dinner." Red replied blushing.

"Yeah it's dinner." Misty said winking to him. She walked out of the arena. Red sighed to himself.

"Pi Pika!" Pikachu cried to its trainer in delight.

"Don't worry buddy, you'll get ice cream tonight." Red said to his Pokemon, patting it on the head.

"Pi Pikachu." Pikachu cooed. Red smiled at his Pokemon; this was going to be a night to remember.

 **Author's note: Hey guys, hope you liked the chapter. Don't forget to review, let me know what you think. In this story, Red and Blue are fifteen, not ten like in the games. I figured that it would add more dimensions to the story. Misty is probably not likely to reappear in this story. Pairing her and Red together just seemed to fit; it always felt like Ash and Misty liked each other more than friends in the anime, but then Ash got another girl, and another girl. I think he is on girl five right now. Anyway, in the next chapter, Red meets Bill, a peculiar Pokemon researcher and gets a surprise.**


	6. Chapter 6 Nugget Bridge

Pokemon Red

Chapter 6: Nugget Bridge

Red woke up in a bed at the Pokemon Center. His date with Misty went well. She had dressed in an elegant blue dress while he was stuck wearing his civilian clothes. They had an easy time talking to each other; it was if they knew each other their whole lives. Pikachu was also at the table; he spent the whole meal nibbling on the ketchup bottle. He got ice cream for dessert; he had a penchant for the creamy treat. Red gave him a bowl which he licked up in no time. At that point, Red was full from his meal. He had a cheeseburger and fries for the main course and chocolate cake for desert. He stomach felt like it was going to burst. He even had some of the food off of Misty's plate. She giggled at his appetite.

After that, they walked back to the gym. Misty wanted him to spend the night with her before he went back on his journey, but he declined; he was just too tired and wanted to go back to the Pokemon Center. Misty sighed in disappointment and gave him a kiss on the lips. Red was completely caught off guard by this. Eventually, he kissed her back and wrapped his arms around her. They gave each other soft pecks for a few minutes and then parted from each other. They went their separate ways. It was a nice experience.

Red parted from those memories and began his morning routine. He had heard from a few people last night that there were interesting Pokemon north of Cerulean city. He had decided then and there that he was going to investigate that claim the next morning. Eventually, he reached a clearing that lead to a bridge. When he was about to step onto the bridge, he met him.

"Yo! What's up Red?" Blue hollered at him, a smirk growing on his lips.

"Hi Blue." Red responded, feeling like his day had been ruined at that moment.

"How many badges do you have? I already got two." Blue said casually, hoping that Red didn't have any.

"Ha that's funny because I also have two gym badges." Red responded. "Looks like we are equally matched then." He tipped his cap at Blue.

"No way!" Blue yelled in frustration. "There is no way that you are better than me! I'll show you. I'm going to kick your butt all over the place. Rattata go!" Without a second thought, Blue threw out a Pokeball. He didn't even have the courtesy to ask Red if he even wanted to battle.

"Fine then!" Red retorted, irritated by Blue's childish behavior. "Charmander it's battle time!"

"Charmander Char!" Charmander squealed as it was released from its ball.

"Rattata use quick attack!" Blue yelled, raising his fist in Red's direction. Rattata rushed toward Charmander.

"Charmander dodge and use mega kick." Red commanded his Pokemon. Charmander was able to evade the attack by jumping up into the air. It ended up stomping on Rattata's neck. Rattata was knocked unconscious.

"Humph." Blue sighed. "How useless. Wartortle it's dinner time."

"War War tortle tor." Wartortle said as it emerged from its Pokeball, hitting its chest with its arms.

"Wartortle use bubblebeam." Blue ordered. Wartortle sent a blast of bubbles at Charmander. Charmander was unable to dodge and was knocked out.

"Like I said last time." Blue commented. "You'll never beat a water type Pokemon with a fire type. You need to have the type advantage." He chuckled as Wartortle flapped its tail, anticipating its next challenger.

"Well if its type advantage you want, its type advantage you get. Pikachu go!" Red retorted, throwing out his trusty electric mouse.

"Pika Pi" Pikachu said, flipping its tail side to side.

"Pikachu use thundershock!" Red commanded. Pikachu sent a bolt of electricity at Wartortle.

"Wartortle use Iron Defense!" Blue ordered. Its body turned silver for a moment. It was enough to severely reduce the damage from the attack.

"Now use withdraw to raise your defense even more!" Blue shouted. Wartortle hid in its shell.

"Pikachu hit it with iron tail." Red requested. Pikachu's tail glowed silver. He rushed toward the shell and smacked it. Wartortle's face popped up along with its tail and legs.

"Wartortle use mud bomb!" Blue yelled. Wartortle sent a splurge of mud at Pikachu. It was super effective. Pikachu's speed fell from the attack.

"Finish it off with fury swipes!" Blue roared. Wartortle rushed toward Pikachu, who was trying to wipe the mud from its eyes. It hit Pikachu with a flurry of scratches. Pikachu was unable to battle after the hit.

"Good job Pikachu," Red told his Pokemon, putting it back in its pokeball "you put up a good fight."

"Ha ha ha," Blue retorted "you wish. You're Pikachu was pathetic."

"Shut up Blue!" Red hollered at him, irritated by his behavior.

"Face it you can't beat me." Blue responded, flipping his hair in a flamboyant fashion. "Why don't you just call it quits now?"

"Never!" Red yelled back at Blue. He grabbed another pokeball from his pocket. "Butterfree it's battle time." Red said, throwing out the pokeball.

"Free free." Butterfree chirped, flapping its wings.

"Hit Wartortle with gust." Red yelled. Butterfree spread its wings and began to send waves of air at Wartortle.

"Wartortle use withdraw." Blue ordered. Wartortle hid in its shell.

"Well if they're going to play like that, I guess we'll just have to use stun spore then." Red stated. Butterfree flapped its wings, and a yellowish powder emerged from them, falling onto the battlefield. The spores got all over Wartortle's shell.

"Wartortle use rapid spin to brush the spores away!" Blue yelled. Wartortle spun around. "Now cover yourself with water." Blue continued. It let out a stream of water which fell over it, washing away the spores.

"Butterfree hit it with confusion." Red said. Butterfree fired a beam from its antenna.

"Wartortle use bubblebeam!" Blue screeched. Both of their attacks hit. Wartortle sustained damage, but was able to stand up and continue battling. Butterfree, however, was knocked from the air and fell to the ground unconscious.

"You put up a good fight Butterfree." Red muttered to his Pokemon.

"What was that Red?" Blue inquired teasingly. Red gritted his teeth and threw out his last Pokemon.

"Pidgey, let's wipe the smile off of his face." Red said.

"Pidge Pidge." Pidgey said while taking to the skys.

"Wartortle use bubblebeam." Blue said. Wartortle sent bubbles after the flying Pokemon.

"Pidgey deflect them with gust!" Red commanded. Pidgey flapped its wings and was able to pop all of the bubbles.

"Now Pidgey attack it head on with tackle." Red asked.

"Pidge Pidge!" Pidgey yelled and dove toward its target.

"Brace yourself Wartortle." Blue told his Pokemon.

"Tortle tor." Wartortle replied, calmed by his trainer's command.

"Grab it and use bite!" Blue yelled. Wartortle stopped Pidgey's attack and chomped down on the captured bird. Pidgey was knocked out. Red put Pidgey back into its Pokeball.

"Well, have you got any other pathetic Pokemon for me to curbstomp?" Blue asked, curling a string of hair with one of his fingers. He gave Red that smirk; the smirk that said 'I got you'.

"No I'm all out." Red replied, wanting to get away from Blue.

"Do you need me to carry you back to the Pokemon center and heal your Pokemon?" Blue teased.

"I'm not a baby Blue!" Red cried at him, blushing under his cap.

"Hahahaha!" Blue laughed at him, walking towards him. Red hating losing to him.

"In that case I've got something for you," Blue said, putting an object in Red's hand. "It's for a chatty gossip like you. It's a Pokenav." Blue said while chuckling. "Gramps wanted me to give it to you."

"Tell him that I appreciate it." Red replied.

"Will do. Smell ya later." Blue said and left. Red stood there for a few moments monitoring the device. It had a built in map of the Kanto region, a log book, and a phone in it. Oak had put his and Blue's numbers in it. There was a message from Blue already.

'Hey Red! Now I have a way of reaching you. It's our special form of communication. I can get to you whenever I want." The message read. Red groaned to himself. He put it in his bag and headed back toward the Pokemon center.

The battle with Blue delayed him, but he was back where he was before that occurred. Right at the base of the bridge. This time however, there was a trainer waiting for him.

"Welcome to Nugget Bridge!" The trainer shouted. "Defeat the five trainers and win a special prize!" He pulled out a pokeball, revealing a Sandshrew.

Red sent out his Butterfree, which made quick work of the Sandshrew. He walked ahead. All of the trainers were very easy to beat; none of them were on par with Blue at all. He walked to the edge of the bridge and saw a suspicious looking man.

"Congratulations!" The man said, giving him a nugget. "I also have a special opportunity for you." He continued. "It's a once in a lifetime chance. Join Team Rocket! We're a special gang of Pokemon hunters. You've got what it takes." The man finished his spiel.

"Never!" Red responded, knowing full well what Team Rocket was up to.

"Well if that's the case, I guess I have no choice but to teach you a lesson." The man replied in a gravelly voice. "Raticate chomp on him."

"Rata Rata." Raticate hissed, scratching its face with its claws.

"Charmander Go!" Red yelled. Charmander appeared from its ball, fully rested.

"Raticate use hyper fang." The Rocket goon yelled. Raticate made a run for Charmander and tried to bite it. Charmander was able to evade it.

"Charmander hit it with ember!" Red roared. Charmander sent flames at the Rat. Raticate was burned by the flames.

"Raticate use hyper beam!" The Rocket yelled. Raticate let out a huge blast from its mouth, Charmander was hit by the attack. Raticate stood there due to the energy it took to launch the attack. Charmander was covered in bruises, barely able to stand up.

"Charmander use scratch." Red commanded. Using its last drops of energy, Charmander scratched Raticate's face. Both Pokemon fell to the ground. They were both unable to continue.

"I guess this is a draw." The Rocket hissed. "You were lucky this time." The Rocket fled.

Red picked up his Pokemon and tended to its wounds. He put Charmander in its pokeball, congratulating it for the fight. Red let out a sigh of relief; he could now go to where he had intended all along. He was going to find the rare Pokemon that the trainers at the Pokemon center were speaking about. He threw out Pidgey and ordered it to go find patches of grass. He sat down on a nearby rock and waited for Pidgey to come back to him.

He pulled his cap over his head and began to relax. It had been a tiresome day; first the battle with Blue, then the situation on the bridge. He finally had time to clear his head and rest. He mind wandered to other things as he quickly fell into a deep slumber.

"Pidge Pidge." Something was calling out to Red. He felt something pecking on his head.

"Ow!" Red said as he woke up. "Oh it's you Pidgey." He said looking at his bird.

"Pidge Pidge." Pidgey said, beckoning for Red to follow it. Pidgey pointed its wings west. It flew up into the air slowly. Red got up and followed his Pokemon.

Soon enough, He and his Pidgey had reached a patch of grass. He rummaged through the grass until he encountered a Pokemon. It was a root with a yellow face. Red pulled out his Pokedex in order to get more information.

"Bellsprout the root Pokemon." Dex said "There live in forests and grassy areas. They have a habit of swinging around trees. Most Bellsprout have a tendency to take long naps while photosynthesizing." Dex finished its spiel.

"Ok Pidgey attack Bellsprout with wing attack." Red commanded. Pidgey dived toward its target and struck it with its wings. Bellsprout was knocked down. The attack was super effective. Red threw a pokeball at the weakened Pokemon.

One shake, two shakes, three shakes, Bellsprout was captured!

"We caught…a Bellsprout!" Red exclaimed, holding up the pokeball. Pidgey puffed its chest.

"Ok Pidgey let's search for more Pokemon." He told his bird. Pidgey nodded its head and went to find another Pokemon. Soon enough, they encountered a sleeping yellow Pokemon. He pulled out his Pokedex.

"Abra the psychic Pokemon," Dex chimed "Abra's dreams are about what is going around it when it is asleep. It is watching right now while it is sleeping. They have a tendency to disappear in an instant, making them very difficult to capture." Dex powered off.

"Pokeball Go!" Red said, knowing from Dex that he only had one chance to capture the sleeping Pokemon. He threw the ball at the unconscious Abra.

One shake. Oh it looked like it was snagged! Abra awoke from its slumber. It looked at its surroundings and disappeared in an instant. It had teleported! Red sighed. Pidgey took to the air again in order to find more Pokemon.

The rest of the day was uneventful; they were not able to find any other Pokemon. Eventually, they decided to head east. Fortunately for them there were trainers there, waiting to battle. The first one was a hiker with rock Pokemon. Red made quick work of him with a vine whip from his newly captured Bellsprout. The next trainer was a lass with grass Pokemon. Red beat her with a combination of Charmander, Pidgey, and Butterfree. The third trainer he encountered had a Machop. Red beat it with a confusion attack from his Butterfree. There were a couple more trainers. Red was able to beat all of them decisively. His confidence grew with each battle. After he defeated one of his opponents, he started a conversation with them.

"Yeah there's a big house at the edge of a cliff." The trainer said. "It's rumored that a hermit lives there." Red nodded at the trainer and decided to investigate this. When he got nearer to the cliff, the path got more treacherous. He wondered to himself how anyone could possibly live here. He saw a few Krabby hiding in the crevices between rocks, but decided that it would be too difficult to capture them. He almost lost his footing once. That would have been bad; he would have likely fallen from the cliff and broken a few bones. Paired with the fact that no one was around, he would have been in extreme danger. Red collected himself and reminded himself to be more careful.

At the end of the cliff, Red saw what he was looking for. The house that the trainer was talking about. He let out a deep breath and opened the door.

Pokedex

Pokemon Seen: 34

Pokemon Obtained: 8


	7. Chapter 7 Cruising for a Bruising!

Pokemon Red

Chapter 7: Cruising for a Bruising!

Red opened the door. He found an empty foyer. He saw a light in the back and walked toward it. There was a metal door. The light was coming from behind it. He pushed the door open; it was extremely heavy. He was momentarily blinded by the bright light.

"Hello." A voice called out to him. It was coming from….a Clefairy?

"Anyone there?" The Clefairy asked approaching him.

"How are you talking?" Red asked it.

"I'm Bill," The Clefairy explained "I switched my brain with a Clefairy as part of an experiment."

"Oh." Red replied, completely confused.

"Would you kindly switch the lever over there when I walked into the chamber?" Clefairy asked.

"Oh, sure." Red responded, still in a state of shock. The Clefairy walked into a chamber while he moved toward a computer. Once Clefairy was safely inside; Red switched on the lever. The chamber that the Clefairy was in and another one made a bunch of beeping noises. The chamber was filled with gas until it opened. Clefairy walked out.

"Clefairy Clefairy." The pink Pokemon cried. The other chamber opened up. A man walked out. He had brown hair and glasses. He patted his khaki pants and straightened his black shirt.

"Thank you." Bill said, expressing his gratitude. "I have something for you." He gave him a ticket.

"What is this?" Red asked.

"It's a ticket for the S.S. Anne. I was invited to a party that was going to be held on the ship, but I'm not into fancy situations like that. I'd rather stay here and do my research." Bill replied.

"Well, thank you." Red responded, smiling at Bill.

"It's no problem really." Bill replied, scratching the back of his head. "If it wasn't for you showing up here today, there's no telling how long I would have been trapped in that Clefairy body. By the way, did you come to see my Pokemon collection?"

"No, I didn't even know who was living here." Red answered, rubbing his face with his pointer finger.

"Oh well," Bill sighed. "Maybe another time then." He picked up the Clefairy and put it back in its pokeball. He extended his hand to Red. Red took his hand and shook it. Red said goodbye and walked out of the mansion.

Two weeks later, Red was standing at the pier in Vermillion City. Already, there was a huge line to get onto the ship. It looked like it was going to be a fancy party. After about an hour of waiting, he got on the ship. It looked huge him. There was pretty much no room in the entrance because the partiers had just entered. Luckily for him, he was given a room. One of the perks that Bill was awarded. He entered the room and threw his stuff on the floor. Since it was an overnight cruise, he decided that he was going to get some shut eye. He wanted to stay awake at night. That would be when the Pokemon battles would start. Kicking off his shoes and throwing his cap to the ground, Red took a nap.

Red groaned while waking up. He felt refreshed and ready to go. He picked up his supplies and headed out to the ball room.

"Hey kid." A shady looking man called out to him in the hallway.

"Yes?" Red replied, not trusting the figure.

"Do you want a rare Pokemon kid? It only costs $500 Poke." The man said, holding out a pokeball.

"Fine." Red replied, handing the man the money. He knew he was being ripped off, but he wanted to save the Pokemon from the shady man.

"Gr….Grr….Hope you like you're Pokemon kid." The man chuckled and walked away.

Red gripped the pokeball and threw it, wondering what was inside. As it turned out, it was a feeble Magikarp.

"Karp Karp Magikarp." The Magikarp cried, flailing around. Red shook his head and laughed. He put Magikarp back in its pokeball. He was glad that he had saved it from the mischievous man. He continued walking down the hallway until someone flung open a door.

"Watch it kid!" A man yelled at him, pulling out a pokeball. A Growlithe popped out of the pokeball.

"Grow owlithe!" The Growlithe cried. It puffed its fur and stood up on its hind legs. Red was aggravated with having to battle, but he threw out Pidgey regardless.

"Pidgeo idge!" Pidgey cried. Pidgey flew up into the air.

"Growlithe trap Pidgey with fire spin." The man ordered. Growlithe let out a spiral of fire at Pidgey. Pidgey was trapped in the vortex!

'This doesn't look good.' Red thought to himself. Suddenly, Pidgey started to glow. Pidgey's appearance changed. The man and Red looked on in amazement; Pidgey had evolved into Pidgeotto. Pidgeotto flapped its wings, getting rid of the flames surrounding it. Red pulled out his pokedex, eager to learn more about his Pokemon.

"Pidgeotto, the evolved form of Pidgey," Dex stated "Pidgeotto avidly hunt worms and other forms of bug. They even gobble up fruits if given to them. They are superior to Pidgey in every form, making it an actual battler." Dex finished. Red put the pokedex back into his pocket.

"All right! Pidgeotto use air cutter!" Red commanded. Pidgeotto flapped its wings and sent slashes of air at Growlithe. It was a critical hit. Growlithe was knocked unconscious.

"Well I say sonny," The man declared "you are a very strong trainer." He put his Growlithe back in its Pokeball. "My name is Damien," The elderly man said "Is there any chance that you have a bug Pokemon on you? I'm searching for a Pokemon to give to my granddaughter as a gift." He took off his hat and folded it in his hands.

"I do have a bug Pokemon in fact I have a Butterfree." Red replied. "However, I'm not very interested in trading it." He answered Damien's question.

"Oh it would be going to a good home!" The man explained. "My daughter's house has plenty of gardens that your Butterfree would absolutely love. Please give it some consideration. I'd part with my Mimey for it." Damien said glossily. He threw out a Pokemon. A pink mime appeared. Once again, Red pulled out his Pokedex for more information.

"Mr. Mime, the servant Pokemon," Dex explained. "They are good homemakers and are avid pastry chefs. Unfortunately, they have a habit of trapping people in barriers as part of a gag. It has a reputation as a trickster, but can be very obedient if trained right." Dex ended its message.

"Mime Mr. Mime." Mimey cried. It raised its hand at Red. Red waved back at it.

"I'll think about it." Red replied, furrowing his brow.

"Thank you for considering my proposal." Gentleman Damien said. "Come on Mimey." Mimey followed him toward the top deck.

Red sighed. 'Should I trade away my Butterfree?' He mused to himself. 'Butterfree doesn't like battling that much. It might be best if it went to a good home where it could enjoy itself.' Red picked up Butterfree's pokeball and looked at it for a moment. He put it back in its holster and continued on his treck to the ballroom.

The ballroom was magnificent. It was filled with bright lights and tables. Hordes of people and Pokemon were already there. Red saw loads of different Pokemon that he had never seen before. People were battling with their Pokemon, trading their Pokemon, styling their Pokemon, it was a Pokemon paradise. Red mingled through the crowd until he got to an area where a battle was taking place. A muscular Pokemon was battling a Pokemon that looked like a hawk. Red pulled out his Pokedex in order to identify the two Pokemon.

"Machoke, the lumbering Pokemon." Dex said. Red scanned the other Pokemon.

"Fearow, the malevolent bird Pokemon." Dex said.

'So these are two pretty powerful Pokemon.' Red thought to himself.

"Fearow use Drill Peck." Fearow's trainer yelled, a tall, scrawny bird tamer.

Fearow flew straight toward Machoke. It launched a flurry of strikes at Machoke.

"Machoke, use cross chop." A bulky man yelled, apparently the trainer of the muscular Pokemon.

"Machoke choke." Machoke cried. It hit Fearow in the neck. Fearow was sent into shock from the hit and was knocked unconscious. A fighting type Pokemon had improbably beaten a flying type Pokemon. The crowd surrounding the battle clapped their hands at the victorious trainer. The muscular man went to the center of the makeshift circle and raised the hand of his Machoke. The bird tamer muttered something under his breath and walked away from the sight of the battle. Even though Red had only watched the end of the battle, he was still mesmerized by the event.

The crowd dispersed and went to watch other battles. Red watched a hulking rock type Pokemon, apparently it was a Golem, face a Vileplume, which was a blue Pokemon with a huge flower on its head. Having the type advantage, Vileplume knocked Golem out with a solarbeam attack. Even its bulky size could not protect it from the attack.

Red wandered through the crowd, watching other battles. All of them as interesting as the last. His legs eventually got tired from all the standing. He sat down on a bench in order to remedy this. He tried to wind down. He sat there for a moment until a familiar voice cried out to him.

"Fancy seeing you here." Damien called out to him.

"Oh hello." Red greeted the gentleman.

"Have you considered my offer?" Damien asked politely.

"Actually I have," Red responded "and my answer is yes. I will trade my Butterfree for your Mr. Mime."

"Excellent!" Damien exclaimed. "My granddaughter will be so happy to have a playmate." Damien and Red walked toward one of the trading systems. Damien put his Mimey in one of the slots while Red put Butterfree in another. The system swapped identification and traded the Pokemon. Now Red owned Mr. Mime while Damien owned Butterfree.

"Thank you so much." Damien said appreciatively.

"No problem. I was happy to help." Red replied with a smile. Damien took Butterfree's pokeball and left. Red smiled as he took his new pokeball from the slot. He had obtained a psychic Pokemon. It hurt to say goodbye to Butterfree, but having a new friend in Mimey weakened the blow. Friends always come and go in life; old friends were once new. Bonds can be made and broken. That was the beauty of being a Pokemon trainer.

Nearing midnight, Red walked out of the ballroom. He didn't have the energy to continue. He was going to go back to his cabin, but he ran into someone.

"Hello Reddy!" Blue cried out.

"How did you get here?" Red asked in a loud voice, completely stunned.

"Since I'm the grandson of Professor Samuel Oak, the greatest man in the Kanto region," Blue replied "I was personally invited to attend this elite social gathering." He flipped his hair and stood up slightly taller than usual.

"You mean Professor Oak gave you his ticket." Red retorted, giving Blue a smirk.

"Shut up!" Blue responded, blushing a deep red. Red had figured it out all too easily. "Whatever I'll just battle you." Blue said. "Raticate let's battle". He threw out Raticate.

"Rata Rata." Raticate cried, clicking its teeth together.

"Mimey I choose you!" Red yelled. Eager to test out the abilities of his new Pokemon.

"Mime Mr. Mime!" Mr. Mime cried out.

"Oh so you've got some new tricks up your sleeve." Blue responded, smirking at Red's new Pokemon. "This will be very easy. Raticate use bite." Raticate jumped at Mr. Mime.

"Mimey mime." Mr. Mime cried. It had set up a barrier, preventing Raticate's attack. Raticate tried to knaw threw the shield, but it had no such luck.

"Mimey use trick room." Red asked his new Pokemon.

"Mr. Mime!" Mimey yelled. The hallway that Red and Blue were occupying turned funky. Mr. Mime had created an illusion! The room turned to splotches of different colors and patterns. Raticate became slower while Mr. Mime gained speed. This was its element.

"Mimey use metronome." Red ordered. Mr. Mime began to wave its hands in a circle. It eventually sent a blast of fire at Raticate. Raticate was knocked unconscious.

"Huh! How pathetic!" Blue said, commentating on his Pokemon's lackluster performance. "I'm going to end this battle right now." He put Raticate back in its pokeball and walked off.

"Wait I haven't beaten you yet!" Red yelled at Blue.

"I don't care." Blue responded. "This trip has been a bust for me. I saw the cut master before. He's the captain of this ship. You'd think he'd be tough, but in reality he's just a sick old man." Blue sighed. "Well, smell ya later Red." He waved and went up into the ball room.

Red felt like chasing after Blue and demand that he finish the fight. 'It wasn't fair.' Red thought 'He bolts the moment he's losing.' He groaned. After a moment, Red got over it and headed back to his cabin. After a few minutes of walking around the ship, he realized he was lost. Red slapped his face in irritation, having no idea where to go. He saw a flight of stairs and decided to walk up it. A door was left ajar. His curiosity poked, Red entered into the cabin. Inside a man was bent over, hovering over a garbage can. The man was sick.

"Help me." The man said. "My medication is in my desk." He pointed to a drawer. Red opened the drawer and saw a bottle with a pink substance in it. He grabbed it and gave it to the seasick man. The man gulped it down.

"Thank you." The man replied. "I am the captain of this ship. In gratitude for your assistance, I will give you a gift." He handed him a disc. "That, my friend, is the hidden machine cut. Unlike a technical machine, hidden machines can be used infinitely. Cut is used to get rid of trees or shrubs in the way. It will be helpful for an adventurer like you." He finished his comment, reenergized from the medicine.

"How did you know that I was traveling?" Red replied.

"You've got that glow," The captain stated "the glow of a true champion." Red thanked him for the compliment. He asked the captain for directions back to his cabin, which the captain was glad to give to him. He headed out of the cabin and into the hallway. With directions, he was able to find his cabin. He took off his shoes and fell asleep.

When he woke up in the morning, the ship had almost docked. He put all of his stuff in his bag and waited for the announcement that the ship had reached Vermillion port. While sitting on his bed, someone knocked on his door.

'Who could that be?' Red asked to himself. He stood up and opened the door, revealing Blue. Blue was casually standing there with his hands in his pockets.

"May I come in?" Blue asked.

"Sure Blue." Red answered. Blue walked into the room and looked around.

"Look I'm sorry that I didn't finish the battle with you last night." Blue said, showing some signs of maturity.

"It's not a big deal." Red replied with a smile, accepting Blue's apology.

"Hey, I wear my heart on my sleeve." Blue stated, giving Red an intense look. Red stared back at him. They held that gaze for seemingly forever; a fierce battle between the two teenagers. One would never let the other get far ahead. They almost pulled out their pokeballs in an attempt to start another battle in their cabin, but a voice called out over the intercom.

"Attention Passengers!" A voice announced. "We are docking at Vermillion port right now. Please gather your things and exit orderly. Thank you for staying here, and we hope you come here again." The intercom shut off. Blue broke their stand off by putting his pokeball back in its holster.

"See ya!" Blue said to him, walking out of the cabin and giving him his signature wave with his back facing Red. Red sat there for a moment in order to collect himself. He took a deep breath and left the cabin.

After exiting the ship, he went to the edge of the harbor and took out a pokeball. He released Magikarp back into the wild.

"There you go Magikarp, swim free." Red said to the Pokemon.

"Magi Magikarp." Magikarp tearfully responded. Thankful that Red had saved him from the bad man who had captured him. Magikarp let out another cry. Suddenly, a whole school of Magikarp appeared. Magikarp joined its friends and swam off into the ocean. Red smiled to himself; happy that Magikarp was where he belonged.

Red watched the cruise liner leave the port. He always loved being near water. Seeing this magnificent vessel leaving the harbor lit something up inside him. With a burning fire in his heart, Red walked toward the Pokemon center, eager to heal his Pokemon and continue on with his adventure.

Pokedex

Pokemon Seen: 42

Pokemon Obtained: 10


	8. Chapter 8 Surge!

Pokemon Red

Chapter 8: Surge!

"I wouldn't go in there if I were you." The hiker warned Red. "That there is Diglett's cave. Those little varmints will run wild under there. It's very dangerous."

"I'm not concerned." Red replied, brushing off the hiker's monitions. "I can handle myself; I'm a Pokemon trainer." He tipped his cap to the hiker and descended into the dungeon.

Red lit up the cave with his Pikachu. It was always happy to be let out of its pokeball. On Red's shoulders, Pikachu let out electricity from its cheeks, lighting the area. For a while, he and Pikachu saw nothing but an empty cave. Suddenly, a loud tunneling sound was heard by the pair.

"Dig Dug Dig Dug." Pokemon cried. Red had stumbled upon a group of Diglett! The Diglett were surrounding Red and Pikachu, burrowing tunnels under and around them. Red pulled out a pokeball.

"Bellsprout, it's time for some pest control!" He yelled, throwing the pokeball on the ground. Bellsprout emerged, flapping its leaves.

"Bellsprout use vine whip to wrangle those mischevious Diglett!" Red commanded.

"Bellsprout Bell." Bellsprout cried. One by one, it caught all of the Diglett.

"Diglett Dig." The Diglett cried. Their tunneling had subsided. Red left the Diglett to their own devices and continued on his trek through the cave. Apparently the entire cave had been created by the tunneling of the wild Diglett. These caverns ran all the way to Pewter City. Due to this, there was no organized path. One could end up being lost in these caves for a long time. Only the Diglett knew the way around the cave. In theory, if Red kept continuing, the only way he could get out was to capture a Diglett. Luckily, he had stocked up on pokeballs this morning.

"Pika Pi." Pikachu purred at Red. He was getting anxious about where they were going.

"Don't worry Pikachu," Red told his Pokemon, "We'll be able to find a way out of here." He pet Pikachu on its head in an attempt to ameliorate its mood.

Red continued on his seemingly endless trek through the winding caverns made by the rambunctious Diglett. He had no problem at all going through dark caves. He didn't suffer from claustrophobia, but he knew that Blue did not like small spaces.

He remembered a time when he and Blue were little kids. They were racing each other. They set a path from Blue's house to the big tree in the woods. Over time, Blue gained a significant lead over Red. When it looked like Blue had won, he tripped and fell into a hole in the ground. Red had trouble locating him. Blue was screaming for hours for someone to save him. Red got scared and went home. The adults eventually found him. Blue had broken his ankle and was stuck in his house for a long time. Blue blamed Red for the incident; he claimed that Red had abandoned him. This drove a wedge between them that became more and more splintered as the years went on.

Pikachu kept on lighting the cave as the two walked through the tunnels. Red tripped and fell on the ground. This was the cause of a tunneling Pokemon. Its tremors were larger than the Diglett he had previously encountered. It turned out to be three ….Diglett?

"Dug Dugtrio!" The thing cried. Red pulled out his Pokedex in confusion.

"Dugtrio, the tunneling Pokemon," Dex explained "They look like three Diglett tunneling together, however they are one unit. Its tunneling creates more problems than regular Diglett. Their ability, arena trap, prevents their opponent from escaping. If you see a Dugtrio, then you should not be where you are." Dex finished.

'Thanks Dex' Red sarcastically thought. He threw out Bellsprout again in order to battle the creature.

"Bellsprout Bellsprout." Bellsprout cried. It flipped its leaves around and dug it roots into the ground.

"Bellsprout use vine whip." Red commanded. It went after Dugtrio with vines. Dugtrio was captured in the knot. Dugtrio looked around and tunneled underground, getting rid of the vines that were entangling it. Red and Bellsprout looked around for the Dugtrio, waiting for it to strike. Suddenly, Dugtrio emerged from the ground, hitting Bellsprout.

"Use stun spore." Red ordered. Bellsprout covered Dugtrio in spores. Dugtrio was paralyzed.

"Now use vine whip again!" Red yelled. Bellsprout hit Dugtrio with a snaring of vines. Dugtrio lost health. Red took this opportunity to throw a pokeball at Dugtrio.

One shake, two shake, oh it looked like it was caught! Dugtrio escaped from the Pokeball.

"Dugtrio Dugtrio!" Dugtrio roared. It rushed toward Bellsprout and knocked it on the ground. Bellsprout was knocked unconscious. Red gritted his teeth and threw another pokeball out.

"Charmander, I choose you!" Red yelled. The orange fire lizard appeared from its pokeball.

"Char Char Char!" Charmander cried.

"Charmander use fire spin!" Red yelled. Charmander launched a spiral of flames at Dugtrio. Dugtrio was trapped in the vortex! Now Dugtrio was paralyzed and suffering damage from the fire spin attack. Red threw another Pokeball at the tunneling Pokemon.

One shake! Oh it looked like it was caught! Dugtrio appeared, determined to pummel Red and his Pokemon.

Dugtrio disappeared into the ground again. Charmander and Red looked around for it, anticipating an attack. Dugtrio reappeared and attacked Charmander. It took a significant chunk of damage. It recoiled and looked to the ground in pain.

"Charmander use ember!" Red belched, trying to support his Pokemon. It let out flames from its mouth. Since Dugtrio was paralyzed, it could not avoid the flames in time; it was hit dead on.

'Here we go. Third time's the charm." Red thought to himself as he threw another pokeball.

One shake. Two shakes. Three shakes. Dugtrio was successfully captured! Red picked up the Pokeball and held it triumphantly in his hand. Knowing that Dugtrio was the only way out of the tunnel, he immediately threw it out of its pokeball.

"Dug Dug Dugtrio!" Dugtrio clamored, still a little testy from the fight.

"Dugtrio can you lead us out of the cave?" Red asked his newly acquired Pokemon.

"Dugtrio Dugtrio." Dugtrio responded, heading in a certain direction. Red, Pikachu, and Charmander frantically followed Dugtrio, having a hard time keeping up with its rapid pace. After a while, Dugtrio had lead them out of the twisty caverns. He had arrived back in the outskirts of Vermillion City. He went back to the pokemon center in order to heal his Pokemon. He gave his five Pokemon to nurse Joy; he had left Mimey in the care of his mother, figuring that it would provide assistance and company to her in the house.

Red grabbed his Pokemon once they were healed and headed toward the pokemon gym. For some reason, there was a tree blocking the path into the gym. Yesterday, he had taught Bellsprout how to use cut for this instance. He pulled out his pokeball, releasing Bellsprout from the ball.

"Bellsprout use cut to clear the path!" Red yelled. Bellsprout cut the tree in half, opening the entrance to the gym for him. He walked into the gym, thinking that he was about to see the gym leader. On the contrary, he was greeted with a bunch of electric walls and a puzzle. There were numerous switches. Red figured that he had to maneuver the switches in order to turn off the electric wall. For about an hour, he fumbled with the switches until the electricity turned off. Finally, he could enter the room where the gym leader was waiting. He slowly turned the door open to reveal an arena. He walked to the challenger's platform. A slow clap was waiting for him.

"Congratulations," A figure said "I am Lt. Surge." The man was of imposing stature and strength. He had hulking muscles and wore camo pants. He was also wearing a wife beater, further exposing his muscles. The man was smirking at Red, his eyes unreadable due to the sunglasses he was wearing. Red took a defensive stance.

"I fought in the war with my Pokemon long before you were born kid." Surge commented. "Prepare for battle," he pulled out a pokeball "this will be a one-on-one battle. Raichu it's combat time." He threw out a huge electric mouse.

"Rai Rai." Raichu cried. It looked like a big Pikachu. Red pulled out his Pokedex.

"Raichu, the orange electric mouse Pokemon," Dex commented "it is the evolved form of Pikachu. They are much slower than their evolutionary counterpart, but they pack a heavy thunderpunch." Dex ended his statement with a pun.

"Dugtrio, I choose you!" Red yelled, thinking that a type advantage would give him a leg up on his opponent.

"Dugtrio, use magnitude!" Red said. Dugtrio shook, causing a tremor on the ground. Raichu was hit.

"Raichu use grass knot!" Lt. Surge commanded. Raichu barreled toward Dugtrio and hit it with a grass type move; the heavier the Pokemon was, the more damage it would take. Dugtrio took a lot of damage from the super effective hit and was knocked unconscious. Red was stunned that he was beaten so easily.

"You need more training kid." Surge commented. "Come back and battle me some other time." He exited from the arena. Red sighed and put Dugtrio back into its pokeball. He still had much to learn.

 _Two Days Later….._

With Bellsprout learning cut, Red was able to clear the tree in Cerulean City that was blocking a route. He would have left for Saffron City, but the roads were closed until further notice. Since a peculiar Pokemon was blocking the path outside of Vermillion City, he had no choice but to go back North. The trip wasn't completely disappointing though, as he was able to capture a Drowzee. Red now had a full team; a Charmander, his starter, a Pikachu, a Pidgeotto, a Bellsprout, a Dugtrio, and a Drowzee. For some reason, the limit of Pokemon a trainer can hold on their person is six. It was something a lot of trainers felt disgruntled about, but at the end of the day, a trainer was responsible for feeding his Pokemon.

He opened a can of pokemon food and gave it to his Pokemon. They each got a portion relative to their size and appetite. Ironically, Pikachu ate the most food. Despite the plump mouse eating a good portion of the pokemon food, he desired to have something tastier. Red relented after seeing the puppy dog eyes that Pikachu was giving him. He gave him a packet of ketchup. It ripped it open and gobbled it up. It purred in appreciation.

Red set up camp for the night and fell asleep under the stars. It was a nice experience; to be out alone in the wild. He was warm under his green sleeping bag, and his tent protected him from the elements; it was windy and cold that night.

When Red woke up, it was daylight. He yawned. 'It was morning already' He thought to himself. He pulled himself out of the sleeping bag. Surprisingly this gave him difficulty as he became entangled overnight. He slowly packed up his sleeping bag and tent and continued on with his journey.

It was a very rural area; there were very few people there. In contrast to this, Pokemon were abundant. They were mostly Pidgey, Spearow, and Rattata; nothing that Red was interested in capturing. He faced a total of three trainers before he reached the pokemon center. They were all uneventful battles; a camper, a hiker, and a lass. Fortunately, his Charmander gained experience points from these fights.

It was midday when he entered the pokemon center. Red was surprised that there even was a center there, the place was so remote. The only noteworthy thing was a cave to the east.

"Hello. Would you like us to heal your Pokemon?" This station's Nurse Joy asked.

"Yes please." Red replied, giving his six pokeballs to Nurse Joy.

"There'll be ready in about an hour." Nurse Joy stated.

"If you don't mind me asking," Red began "why is there a pokemon center here in a place so sparse and far away from the city?" Red inquired.

"The reason is because of the cave to the east." Nurse Joy answered. "It is called the Rock tunnel; it leads to Lavender Town. The Rock tunnel is also a very dangerous place." Nurse Joy continued. "If you plan on going through the tunnel, you should be very careful. A lot of accidents occur in there." Joy warned.

"Oh okay," Red responded "thank you for the information." He was tired from the hike getting to the center and decided to enter the cave tomorrow even though there was still plenty of daylight left. Red spent the rest of the day relaxing.

The next day, Red walked out of the pokemon center and toward the tunnel. There was a sign right in front of the cave. 'Warning,' it read 'this cave is extremely dangerous. Serious injury or death may occur. Please turn back now.' Red finished reading the sign. He ignored the warning and went into the cave.

The cave was dark and damp. It started with a small opening and a ladder. He had to descend before he went into the actual cave. The ladder was slippery and wet. It was already a foreboding omen. Once he landed on the bottom, Red almost caught his foot. He put pressure on his opposite foot in order to dispel the opposite foot from a crevice in the ground. With that, he let out a sigh of relief. After that he surveyed his surroundings. It looked like the cave had been an old mine shaft. There were old oil lamps that hadn't been lit in ages; the roof of the cave was supported by moldy, wooden planks. This place had seen better days. Water was dripping into the floor of the cave from the ceiling. Red treaded very slowly, aware that going too fast could leave him seriously injured. He walked until he felt the ground crumble under his leading foot. He retreated as he saw a huge crevice right in front of him.

'That must have been a mine shaft.' Red thought. This was the only way down. He shrugged and threw a rope down the shaft. Red sent Drowzee out of its pokeball in order to hold the rope while he descending.

"Drowzee Drow." Drowzee cried, obeying his trainer's command and holding the rope. Red carefully descended deeper into the cave. Once he reached the bottom, he pulled on the rope and beckoned for Drowzee to follow. Drowzee jumped down. Since he was a Pokemon, he was able to endure the fall. The cave was getting darker the more he travelled into it. Drowzee lit the cave with his flash move, but that only did so much. Unlike Mt. Moon, there weren't any pokemon trainers in the cave. There was the occasional Pokemon, but most of them were sleeping. Red avoided them, not wanting to have his Pokemon faint from fighting. If that was to occur, he would be stuck in a dank, frigid cave, deep in the darkness.

Suddenly, Red began to feel woozy. The air quality in the cave was atrocious. He felt like he was falling. Then, everything turned pitch black.

He woke up. He was still in the cave, but it had turned Technicolor. Stars were circling around his eyes. Red continued on his path, it became randomly narrow, then wider. It almost felt like it ran in circles. It got funkier as the lights turned off. He couldn't see anything at all. He stumbled around until he fell. It felt like he was falling forever. Ultimately, he fell to the ground. His body was aching in pain from the fall. He tried to throw out one of his Pokemon to help him, but when he reached for them, they were not there. He slowly got up. Once he did, he saw two gleaming yellow lights in the darkness. A creature leaped out of the shadows and attacked Red. Red felt tremendous pain as the creature dug into him. He saw his insides as the creature peeled off his skin with its teeth. Red went into shock and collapsed.

He opened his eyes; he was sweating profusely. He breathed heavily for a few moments, and then he collected himself. His clothes were completely dirty. His shoes were covered in mud. There was viscous fluid on his shirt. He stood up; he was still in the tunnel. Drowzee had disappeared. Luckily, there was an oil lamp that was working. Its light kept the cave lit for Red. He squinted his eyes and grabbed the oil lamp.

'That was a weird dream.' He thought to himself, completely unsure what just happened. His steps seemed to be slow, and his walk was gangly. 'I feel so heavy' Red thought. Eventually, he saw a light at the end of the tunnel. He was amazed; it was a giant lake in the bottom of the cave! There were tons of water Pokemon swimming around. Incidentally, he saw Drowzee in the center of the cave. It was standing on a rock, dancing. How it got there, he had no idea. Drowzee's dance hypnotized everything in the clearing. Suddenly, the cave flooded. Red tried to escape, but he ultimately drowned in the water. He mind turned black.

Red shook his head and opened his eyes. His head was hazy. Eventually, the cave came in his mind. Drowzee was hovering over him, tending to something. He picked up his Pokedex in order to explain what had happened.

"Drowzee, the dream Pokemon," Dex explained "It sends people and Pokemon alike into a deep slumber in order to eat their dreams. There have been cases of both Drowzee and Hypno abducting people, most of these victims have never been heard from again. The ones who have don't like to talk about it." Dex finished. Red shuddered at the horrifying pokedex entry. Then he realized he was completely alone with a Pokemon that had an appetite for dreams. Red's body tensed up as he realized that Drowzee had been the cause of the nightmares.

As it turned out, Red had broken his ankle. Drowzee was tending to it. He put him to sleep and had used Red's first aid kit in order to form a splint. He was glad that Drowzee was helping him. The horrifying entry from the Pokedex left his mind. He trusted Drowzee.

"Drow Drow." Drowzee cried, realizing that Red had woken up for his induced slumber. Drowzee took out something from Red's bag; it looked like a potion. 'Now he remembered' Red thought. 'I was attacked by a Golbat, and I tripped over, causing me to break my ankle.' He gritted his teeth in frustration. Drowzee tried to protect him, but he was too slow; Golbat ended up biting Red in the arm.

Red looked at his injured arm. It was bleeding profusely, but Drowzee applied the antidote to his arm, disinfecting the wound. Red screamed in pain from the application. Drowzee had paralyzed him, making it easier for her to tend to his wounds. Drowzee wrapped his arm with bandages from his bag. Red was glad that his mother had the foresight to pack medical supplies for him. He would have never anticipated that this would have happened.

Drowzee reached for his mid-section. Red tensed up as Drowzee grabbed his pokeballs. Drowzee pulled out Charmander and Dugtrio.

"Drow Drowzee!" Drowzee ordered Dugtrio to find an exit from the cave.

"Dugtrio Dugtrio." Dugtrio replied. It tunneled underground in order to complete its objective.

"Charmander Char." Charmander stood by Red in order to keep him warm. Drowzee took a blanket from his bag and wrapped it around him. Again, Drowzee put him to sleep. This time though, the dreams were peaceful.

A few hours later, Dugtrio returned. Drowzee woke Red up from his sleep. She picked Red up and followed Dugtrio out of the cave. Charmander followed her and Dugtrio. Its light helping keep the cave lit along with Drowzee's flash. Red was groggy. When he completely woke up, Drowzee stopped carrying him and had him walk with one arm around her. This process was slow, but Drowzee was not strong enough to carry Red through the whole cave. Charmander was in charge of keeping wild Pokemon away from the others. They had encountered a few Zubat and Geodude, but nothing too serious. Charmander was able to keep them at bay.

They reached a fork in the tunnel, and Dugtrio led them to the right. It led to a big clearing in the cave. They had to wander around stalagmites and stalactites. It was very dangerous, especially with Red's bum ankle. Dugtrio helped soften the ground with its tunneling. This helped Drowzee and Charmander slide Red through this section of the cave.

Soon after clearing this precipitous area, they reached a lake. Conveniently, there was a boat there along with a dock. There were tour guides in the boat. Apparently, there were guided tours down here too. The dates on the tour guides went back twenty-five years ago. So it was not recent, meaning that no one would be there to assist the injured Red but his Pokemon. Drowzee and Charmander put Red in the Boat while Dugtrio scaled the walls of the cave to get to the other side. The two Pokemon began rowing. Red and his Pokemon saw bones lying on the edges of the cave. This terrified all of them, but they kept moving. Once they reached the end of the lake, they had docked the boat at the other hand and got out of it. Dugtrio greeted them when they stepped on the ground again.

Frighteningly enough, they saw more skeletons as they went through the cave. Human skulls were lying around. They were all scared from this, except Dugtrio, who kept tunneling along. Since the boat tour was there, they assumed that the end of the tunnel would appear soon. The appearance of this disturbing section was unhinging his Pokemon. Red was slowly losing his grips also. All he wanted to do was to scream in terror, but he stayed strong for his Pokemon.

 _Twenty Years Ago, a women named Madame Boss was in charge of Team Rocket. She ordered her troops into the abandoned mine shafts near Lavender Town. They were searching for Zapdos, a rare legendary bird Pokemon that was rumored to be dormant in the cave. They took over the mines and started to destroy the tunnels and capture any Pokemon in the area. If people or Pokemon intruded, they were killed instantly. Those were the orders that Madame Boss had given to her inferiors._

 _She was a ruthless boss; nothing but perfection was tolerated. She was well known for torturing subjects that did not comply with her orders. If they failed a mission, she was likely to kill them. Kanto was in the midst of a war, leaving her to do as she pleased with her criminal organization. Her atrocities were known throughout the region, but there was nothing anyone could do about it. Trainers like the middle-aged Samuel Oak and Agatha, a legendary poison Pokemon trainer, did what they could in order to stop her, but most of their efforts were futile._

 _Bringing us back to the cave, the Rocket grunts stormed into the dungeon. They descended deeper and deeper into the cave until they reached a clearing, this was where the rumored Zapdos was sleeping. The grunts were stunned that the rumors had been true; Zapdos was there in the flesh. The grunts pulled out hordes of Pokemon and capture nets. They paralyzed, poisoned, and burned the electric bird. These attacks caused Zapdos to fall into a frenzied rage. It unleashed all of its power on the grunts and their Pokemon._

 _It sent a furious wind inside the clearing. It then launched thunderbolt after thunderbolt at the grunts. There were no survivors. The grunts and the Pokemon were electrocuted. Zapdos roared and exited the cave, never to be again in the same place._

 _When Madame Boss heard of the news of the unsuccessful mission, the wine glass in her hand shattered under her grip. She went on a tirade, lashing out at the defenseless grunts who had handed her the news. She had been searching for the legendary Pokemon for years. Now it was gone. The opportunity had been squandered. What she had been planning with the legendary Pokemon was never discovered. She died months later of poor health, leaving her son in charge of Team Rocket. He greatly scaled back the operation as the war that Kanto was fighting was winding down. In one day, Zapdos had ended the golden era of Team Rocket._

Present Day

Dugtrio eventually led Red and his Pokemon to the end of the cave. They could see the light emitting from the outside. Once they got out of the cave, they saw a small town in the distance. It was covered in fog. It looked like this would be the place where Red was going to rest. It would take six weeks in order for his ankle to heal. It was rather spooky. There was a huge tower that popped out of the fog. It had an eerie feel to it. Red and his Pokemon walked on, ready to get some rest.

Pokedex

Pokemon Seen: 48

Pokemon Obtained: 13


	9. Chapter 9 Lavender Town Syndrome

Pokemon Red

Chapter 9: Lavender Town Syndrome

Lavender Town, the stuff of legends. For generations, it had been plagued with an unfortunate reputation. Its beginnings as a settlement that would bury their dead in tunnels underground, using the bones as support for the walls, terrified wanderers who came to this place. Ghost Pokémon naturally descended upon this place due to its natural climate. Located between mountains and having a high altitude, it was always covered in fog. It was a difficult place to come by; most Pokémon trainers deliberately avoided it on their journey. It terrified most people.

There was a legend of a man named Filio Romancruf. He was a man who was deeply in love with a lass who owned a Ninetales. Tragically, the Ninetales rejected the man. The man did everything to change the opinion of the fox Pokémon, but it didn't budge. Due to the protective nature of the Ninetales, the couple met in secret. One day, Ninetales caught the two eloping. Enraged, it put a curse on the man. He suddenly disappeared never to be seen again. The woman became depressed over his disappearance and took herself from this existence. Still to this day, it is rumored that the ghost of this woman wanders the area around Lavender Town, wishing to destroy every chance of love that blossoms.

Here we come back to our hero. Red was resting peacefully in a bedroom in a building. This building was the Pokémon house. It was a place for displaced trainers and Pokémon alike. When his Pokémon had taken him to Lavender Town, Red met a kind, old man named Mr. Fuji.

Mr. Fuji owned the Pokémon house. It was his life's work; he took joy out of caring for Pokémon and trainers passing by. He had lived neared Lavender Town his entire life. Unlike the other residents, he was undeterred by the Town's reputation. He saw it as a beautiful place that was misunderstood.

Others, however, were frightened by the spooky appearance that it gave off. The fables about ghosts did not help matters also. It was rumored that wayward travelers would disappear into the fog and never reemerge. Mr. Fuji claimed that they were just tall tales, but you had to wonder.

This is what Red had learned when he arrived in this cursed town. He did not put much stock in these stories either, but he felt something dark lurking around the town at night. He would have Charmander or Pikachu out at night to sleep with, just in case.

The days went by slowly for our hero. He was confined in a bed for most of them. He was given crutches, but he preferred not to use them because they were extremely uncomfortable for him to move around while using them. Fortunately, he had a window right next to his bed so he could sit and watch the outside activity. Lavender Town was extremely rural; there were only about sixty residents in the town. There wasn't even a Pokémon center there. The only noteworthy building was the Pokémon Tower, which was said to house the spirits of the dead Pokémon that were buried there. The tower also housed ghost Pokémon, who Mr. Fuji claimed were the cause of the rumors. He explained to Red that ghost Pokémon loved to play tricks on people. He had a ghost Pokémon living with him at the Pokémon house, but eventually released it into the tower because it was too troublesome to deal with.

Most of the days were suspiciously cold. It also seemed to rain a lot, making the perpetual fog thicker. Red felt like his energy was being sapped, weirdly Mr. Fuji was immune to this. He wondered to himself if Mr. Fuji was a ghost sometimes, playing the ultimate trick on him. He could never seem certain. The days mixed with the nights rather easily. The only thing he could pin his thoughts too were that this town had a bad aura.

About four weeks into his recovery, someone Red knew from Pallet unknowingly ran into him. Her name was Green. She had started the same day as he and Blue, but she had left later. By default, she received Bulbasaur, the grass starter. Surprisingly, the two of them had a tremendously strong bond. Bulbasaur was always out of its pokeball, running around freely. When Red asked her how she got to Lavender Town with all the road blocks, she slyly replied that she just snuck through. That was one thing about Green, she was extremely mischievous.

While Blue loved to play pranks on Red, Green loved to play pranks on everyone. Red couldn't count on his fingers how many times he had been on the receiving end of Green's jokes. Green would always come over to Red's house and try on his and his mom's clothes, posing in the mirror in Red's room. If anything, she was a hotheaded firecracker. Sometimes, she would barge into the bathroom while he was taking a shower and pull him out. Even now she would still do this. Heck, she even went into the shower with him. She didn't care; she was a free spirit. For a fifteen year old, it looked like she had filled in already. Even though they were childhood friends, Red had a huge crush on her. Unlike Misty, it was much more of a physical desire. The bad side of this was that Red knew if he got involved with her, she would draw him into all her schemes. He would practically be a dog on a leash. He wasn't so sure if he wanted this.

He recalled one time when Green had pranked Blue badly. She had went into his house and left a love letter supposedly from a girl he had a crush on. Thinking this was from her, Blue rushed over to her house with flowers in his hand. In fact, the girl had no interest in Blue whatsoever, coldly rejecting the boy. Blue was crushed by this. When Green told him of this, she had burst out into a fit of laughter. She said she had seen the whole thing, spying from the bushes. He chided her, telling her that it wasn't right to play with someone's emotions like that. She replied by sticking out her tongue at him and saying that it was just for fun. Blue never knew that Green did this to him, but he always suspected that it was the case.

One of the things that aggravated Red about Green was that she never listened to him or anyone. She was fiercely independent. She always desired to pick a fight even when the odds were stacked against her. This stubbornness made him sigh many a time in irritation. She always had to make it difficult. She even tried to walk around Viridian City topless once. She was thrown in jail by Officer Jenny and was about to be lectured by her, but she escaped from the jail. He wondered if this was true because Green always had a habit of making up stories. Hell, this place fit her perfectly what with the rumors and all.

Unsurprisingly, she loved the stories about this place. She pranced around the room he was inhabiting and enacted some of them for him. This amused him. At least she could always make him laugh. One time, a shy little Cubone ran into the room. The poor little thing was terrified, running under Red's bed. Mr. Fuji came up and calmed the scared Pokémon. He told Red and Green that Cubone's mother was cruelly murdered by members of Team Rocket. He said that he was lucky enough to rescue the misfortunate creature before they were able to enact the same fate on him. Since Cubone had seen the murder himself, he was scarred for life. Fuji said that the Cubone had been staying here for four months; still just a baby.

Red and Green were horrified by this story. They felt pity for the poor Pokémon and swore to themselves that Team Rocket would pay for their horrible deeds. Red never thought that the gang he had run into at Mt. Moon were capable of this kind of evil, but apparently he was wrong.

A few days after that, Mr. Fuji went mysteriously missing. All that he had left was a message to one of his interns that he was heading up to the tower to deal with some "rabble-rousers" that were wreaking havoc in the upper levels of the tower. After that he departed and no one had seen him since. Red desired to go to the tower and find him, but his injury prevented him from doing so. Green volunteered to go in his place. Even though she herself was not so thrilled with going up into the spooky tower.

She retrieved her team from their lounging spots in the house; a sleeping Clefable, who could change her shadow to mimic ghost Pokémon, her trusty Ponyta, who was always willing to give her a ride for a quick getaway, a Koffing, whose ability to spew poisonous gas made it useful to Green in her schemes, a Jigglypuff, which could put anyone to sleep with its singing, and last but not least Bulbasaur, who was the leader of this feisty Pokémon pack. Her team was more about her gimmicks than engaging in battles. She was not very interested that much in battling; she preferred to sneak around places like a sly fox.

Once she had gotten all of her Pokémon in their pokeballs sans Bulbasaur, she said her goodbyes to Red and promptly left for the tower. The moment she reached the tower, she stood there in amazement, taking its glory in.

"Wow look at that Bulbasaur. It looks like it goes on for hours." She stated in astonishment, unable to see the whole structure.

"Bulba Bulba." Bulbasaur replied, equally stunned by this impressive structure. Green and Bulbasaur slowly walked into the tower. The first floor did not have any grave sites; it was a reception area. Green looked behind the desk; no one was there. She hopped over and started to roam through the computer and looked at the files; she was an expert hacker. After a few minutes, she got bored by this approach as she found nothing suspicious at all. She sighed and beckoned her Pokémon to follow her.

"Come on Bulbasaur, let's find Mr. Fuji." She said to the petal Pokémon.

"Bulbasaur Bulba." It replied, rushing up the stairs with her.

The first floor had gravesites. It was dimly lit compared to the ground floor. Green was still able to see. It looked like no ghost Pokémon lurked on this floor. Green surveyed the area for Mr. Fuji, but was unable to find him. Bulbasaur calmly walked with its trainer. They went up another flight of stairs.

The second floor was where it started to get ominous. There was a fog that hovered around the area and there was no lighting to speak of. Green was surprised at how poorly kept this area was. She pulled out her flashlight and inspected the area.

"Ah! Ghosts!" a voice cried out, running into Green.

"What the…..!" Green yelled as the person collided with her. They both stood up and recognized each other; it was Blue.

"What are you doing here?" Green asked nonchalantly, indifferent to Blue's terror. Blue took in a few deep breaths. She waited for him to calm down.

"I was here looking for ghost Pokémon," he stuttered, "but I ran into a real life ghost." He flinched in fear. "It was terrifying Green; it howled at me and told me to get out. It chased after me. I thought I was a goner." He was shivering.

"It was probably just a ghost Pokémon." Green replied, trying to rationalize the situation.

"This wasn't a ghost Pokémon. I'm certain of that. I saw I real ghost." He said, Green rolled her eyes.

"Well come on then, I need your help to find someone." Green ordered.

"I'm not going up there!" Blue shrieked in terror.

"Yes you are." She chided him. She gave him a smirk and turned to her Pokémon. "Bulbasaur leech seed!" she commanded. Bulbasaur sent a seed at Blue which wrapped around him.

"Hey let me go!" Blue shrieked, struggling to get out of the vines that sprouted around him. Because Blue was trying to tear the pesky vines from his body, the vines wrapped around him even tighter and sapped all of his strength.

Green pulled Clefable's pokeball out of her pocket.

"Clefable it's time to take out the trash." She yelled. Clefable burst from the ball ready to be given orders from its trainer.

"Clefay Clefable." Clefable crowed.

"Carry Mr. Oak here," she pointed to the struggling Blue, "up the tower with us." Blue continued to try to pull the vines off of him while Clefable picked him up and started to carry him.

"This isn't funny Green!" Blue exclaimed. "I'm warning you there are ghosts in this tower!" He tried to reason with her.

"And I'm telling you that I don't care." Green replied, picking up Blue's abandoned flashlight and putting it in her pocket. "Clefable, Bulbasaur, let's go." She muttered to them.

"Let me go!" Blue yelped, trying to scuttle out of this situation. His cries were ignored as this motley crew ascended to the next floor.

The third floor was even darker than the second. There were voices cackling at Green and Blue. Clefable and Bulbasaur walked around; unhinged by this area. Suddenly, an old lady barged right in front of them.

"Bwwaaahhhh!" She shouted, pulling out a pokeball. It was a ghost chancellor. They were experts at summoning ghosts. They're like a human Ouija board. It threw out a pokeball.

"Gas Gas." A strange gas-like Pokémon emerged from the ball. Green pulled out a pink pokedex; she was given it by Professor Oak.

"Gastly, the gaseous ghost Pokémon," Dex stated "Gastly hover around in areas where deceased Pokémon and people are buried. They enjoy inflicting pain on people who are visiting their loved ones." Dex turned off.

"That's a weird Pokémon." Green commented. The chancellor said nothing; it stood there waiting for Green to call her Pokémon out. Green gritted her teeth; aggravated at the lack of acknowledgement.

"Ponyta, its battle time." Green declared. Ponyta let out a neigh.

"Ponyta use flame wheel." Green ordered, determined to finish the battle quickly.

"Pony" Ponyta cried. Pontya's flames on its back flared up while it charged at Gastly. The gas Pokémon was struck head on and fainted. The Chancellor vanished.

"That was weird." Green noted.

"I'm telling you," Blue stated, "there are ghosts in here. It's not safe." He struggled again to be freed of his bindings. However he didn't find any success.

"Be quiet!" Green shouted at the restrained trainer. "Bulbasaur hit him with stun spore." Green ordered her Pokémon. Bulbasaur shot spores at Blue, rendering him close to unconscious.

"Gr…..Green…wha…are…you…do?" Blue muttered. The spores took effect. He was fully paralyzed.

"Good." Green stated, flipping her hair. "Now with that finished… oh no…. not again." She stated in ire; another chancellor had appeared from the shadows.

"Howwwwwwwww." It pulled out a pokeball. The Pokémon was another Gastly.

"Gastly Gas." It cried. Once, again Green pulled out her Ponyta to battle.

"Ponyta charge!" Green yelled. Ponyta neighed.

"Ponyta use bite on Gastly!" Green commanded. Ponyta charged and hit Gastly with a bite attack. Gastly disappeared along with the chancellor.

'Something isn't right.' Green thought. Blue squirmed unnoticed by her. There was definitely something going on in this tower.

Back at the Pokémon house, Red was got up from his bed and looked out the window at the Pokémon Tower, having a bad feeling about what was going on…


	10. Chapter 10 Tower of Terror

Pokémon Red

Chapter 10: Tower of Terror

Green and Blue continued their ascent to the top of the tower. Clefable and Bulbasaur were moving very cautiously. The threats of ghost Pokémon and chancellors still looming.

"Ugghhh….Uggh…Will you let me down now Green?" Blue pleaded with his capturer.

"Do you promise not to run away in fright, scaredy cat? Green asked teasingly with a sinister smile on her face.

"Okay okay I won't run away." Blue responded, itching to get out of his bindings. Clefable put him down for a second.

"Ponyta come out." Green said, releasing the horse Pokémon from its ball.

"Pony Ponyta." Ponyta cried as it was released from its capsule device.

"Ponyta bite the weeds off of Blue." Green commanded, pointing to the wrapped trainer.

"Ponyta Ponyta." Ponyta replied, rushing over to Blue and tearing the bindings off with its thick teeth. Once Blue was freed, he stood up and stretched.

"Well, will you give me back my flashlight?" Blue asked her in an authoritative manner.

"Fine." Green replied, tossing him his flashlight. They both moved on to the top of the tower, not speaking to the other.

Unsurprisingly, they encountered more trainers with ghost Pokémon. They got more and more gruesome. When one of them was defeated, it popped. It left blood and guts on the floor.

"Ew! That's disgusting!" Green exclaimed. Blue looked at it in disgust. They moved on, avoiding the pool of entrails.

Eventually, they reached the second to last floor. It had an eerie presence to it.

"This was where I met the ghost." Blue stated, shivering to himself. Green ignored his admonitions and approached the staircase. Suddenly, a purple haze appeared.

"Get out! Get out!" The haze hissed. The hair on the back of Blue's neck rose.

"Ah!" Blue screamed in fright.

"Bulbasaur use vine whip!" Green commanded over the noise.

"Bulba Bulba." Bulbasaur responded, launching its vines at the haze.

"Get out! Get out!" The haze hissed in a louder voice. This intimidated Bulbasaur, who hid behind his trainer.

"Come on Bulbasaur." Green groaned, not noticing Bulbasaur's fear.

"Get out! Get out!" The haze shrieked even more ominously. Blue covered his ears. Green squinted and turned to Clefable.

"Clefable attack that ghost with shadow ball." Green ordered.

"Clefable Clefable." Clefable responded, beginning to create a ball of murky substances from the environment.

"No!" The haze hissed at Clefable. Clefable was frightened and was unable to attack.

"What?" Green looked perplexed as Clefable ran behind her.

"Get out! Get out!" The haze roared. A giant gust of wind entered the room seemingly from nowhere.

"Ah! We're going to die!" Blue shrieked. Bulbasaur and Clefable hugged their trainer. The haze rushed toward them; Green closed her eyes.

'I guess this is it.' Green thought to herself.

"Pidgeo Pidgeo!" A pokemon cried from the window, dropping a pair of binoculars between Green and the haze. The haze retreated for a moment. Green opened her eyes and surveyed the area.

'It's Red's Pidgeotto!' She pondered. 'What did it leave for me?' Green picked up the pair of binoculars. Pidgeotto flapped its wings and left the horrible tower. She sighed in confusion and put the binoculars on.

"These are weird." She stated. "What?" She yelled, looking at the haze. With the binoculars she could clearly see that the haze was actually a Marowak.

"It's a Marowak!" Green yelled, pulling out her pokedex.

"Marowak, the bone keeper Pokémon," Dex stated "The bone it holds is its key weapon. It throws the bone skillfully like a boomerang to KO targets. It has grown more vicious over the ages." Dex concluded its analysis of the Pokémon.

"Leave this place." The Marowak ordered.

"We're here to save Mr. Fuji." Green protested.

"All humans shall pay for their evil deeds!" The Marowak yelled charging at the two trainers and the Pokémon.

"Oh no, not again!" Blue shouted, unable to move. Green and her Pokémon were frozen. Fortunately for them an intruder stopped Marowak's potential assault.

"Cubone, Cubone." Cubone said to the Marowak. It was the Cubone from the Pokémon house! This Marowak must have been its mother!

"Marowak Marowak." The Marowak told the Cubone. The Cubone instinctively hugged the haze. Marowak's rage subsided; it headed to the afterlife.

The ominous aura in the tower subsided. Green and Blue both breathed a sigh of relief, taking a few moments to collect themselves.

"Now all that we have to deal with is the vandals." Green stated. Blue nodded his head, regaining his hubris and composure. The two rushed up the stairs and to the top of the tower.

At the top of the tower Mr. Fuji was being held hostage by three Team Rocket grunts.

"Why are we even here again?" The first Rocket grunt asked another.

"The boss wanted us to take inventory of this area." The second grunt responded.

"Hey! Shut up you two and watch the old man." The third rocket grunt ordered, annoyed by the behavior of his two comrades.

"You fiends won't get away with this!" Mr. Fuji adamantly declared, trying to free himself from the ropes that he had been bound with.

"Be quiet old man." The third rocket snarled, slapping Mr. Fuji gruffly. Mr. Fuji groaned in pain.

"Hey!" Green protested, emerging from the stairs along with Blue. "You're going to pay for that." She hissed and pointed at the grunt that had hit Mr. Fuji.

"Hey look!" The grunt snickered. "It's two kids thinking that they can beat us." He chided to his team mates. "Let's teach them a lesson, especially that plump girl." He said, licking his lips.

"Eww." Green said in disgust. "Bulbasaur let's battle." She threw her starter out of its pokeball.

"Bulba Bulba." Bulbasaur cried, standing its ground.

"Wartortle it's time for battle." Blue yelled, throwing the blue turtle Pokémon from its pokeball.

"War War." Wartortle cried, puffing its chest in anticipation of a battle.

"Zubat let's go." The first Rocket grunt yelled. A bat emerged from the ball.

"Ewwaaahh." The Zubat cried.

"Sandshrew take a bite out of those two." The second Rocket grunt yelled. A sandy mouse appeared.

"Ekans it's time to snare." The third Rocket grunt said. A purple snake appeared on the floor of the tower.

"Be careful. They are pretty strong." Mr. Fuji warned.

"Well let's get this battle started." The third Rocket grunt remarked. "If you win, we will leave. However, if we win, you two will pay for this intrusion." He snickered while the other two grunts laughed. The three already believed they had victory in their hands.

On one side Ekans, Sandshrew, and Zubat stared down Bulbasaur and Wartortle.

"Zubat use supersonic." A grunt yelled. The Zubat roared and launched a wave of confusion at Bulbasaur and Wartortle.

"Wartortle protect." Blue commanded. Wartortle set up a spiral that protected it and Bulbasaur from the attack.

"Sandshrew let's get in this with fury swipes." Another Rocket grunt declared.

"Sand Sand." The Sandshrew cried and rushed toward Wartortle.

"Wartortle use water pulse." Blue commanded. The turtle formed a ball of water in its palms and sent it at Sandshrew. Sandshrew was hit head on and fainted from the super effective attack.

"Oh no!" The Rocket Grunt yelled. The other two snickered at him.

"You need to sharpen your battling skills." The first Rocket member chided the second.

"Be quiet!" The second Rocket responded, clearly embarrassed at having been beaten so quickly.

"Ekans use sludge bomb." The third rocket yelled.

"Kans Snake." Ekans cried, sending a huge ball of sludge at Bulbasaur.

"Bulbasaur dodge." Green yelled. Bulbasaur avoided the attack. The sludge hit a nearby box, which corroded due to the acidity of the bomb.

"Bulbasaur use frenzy plant." Green yelled, unleashing her secret weapon. Bulbasaur caused a complete growth of plants from the floor, snaring Ekans and Zubat. They were both knocked unconscious from the attack. The three Rockets were also trapped in the vines.

"Oh no!" The rockets yelled in frustration. Green and Blue hurried to Mr. Fuji, releasing him from his binds.

"Are you okay Mr. Fuji?" Green tenderly asked.

"I am now." He responded. "Now that these rapscallions have been captured." The three of them looked at the trapped Rocket grunts, figuring that officer Jenny would deal with them. They exited the tower.

After those events, the trio took Mr. Fuji back to the Pokémon House to rest. Mr. Fuji collapsed on his bed and went into a peaceful slumber. The Cubone had magically reappeared in its shelter, almost as if it had never left. Blue decided to leave at this moment, not even aware that Red was inside the building. Green just chuckled and stuck out her tongue at him. She casually walked up to Red's room. She opened his door, seeing him standing at the window with Pidgeotto perched on his arm.

"I'm baaaaaaccccckkkk." Green obnoxiously replied. Red looked at her and smiled.

"We found Mr. Fuji." She gleefully exclaimed. "It was Team Rocket who was causing all the problems in the tower." She stated to him.

"That figures." Red stated, looking out at the sky. "It looks a lot more peaceful out there." He muttered.

"You really saved me with these." Green remarked, handing him the binoculars. "How did you get them?" She asked him.

"Well it kind of happened like this." Red responded.

 _A few hours ago, a Fearow was knocking on Red's window._

 _"_ _Huh a Fearow, why would it be here?" Red mused. He opened the window._

 _"_ _Fearow Fearow." Fearow cried, motioning for Red to take a package it had been holding in its claws._

 _"_ _Thank you." Red responded to the bird Pokémon. Fearow nodded its head in appreciation and left back into the sky._

 _'_ _I wonder what this is.' Red mused, opening the package since it was addressed to no one. There was a note and a strange pair of binoculars in it._

 _'_ _Dear Mr. Fuji,' the note read 'in this box I have left a device called the silph scope. This device will allow you to identify ghosts. I thought this would help you with those noxious rumors about that dastardly Pokémon tower. If you have any questions, please notify me. Warm regards. –Bill"_

 _Red folded the note up and put it back in the box. He pulled out the binoculars and put them on. They allowed him to view a heat map of the room. He pulled them off and called out Pidgeotto from its pokeball._

 _"_ _Pidgeotto Pidge!" Pidgeotto cried, raising its wings toward the roof._

 _"_ _Pidgeotto I need you to deliver this to Green, she's inside the Pokémon tower." Red stated to his Pokémon._

 _"_ _Pidgeo Pidge." Pidgeotto replied, grabbing the binoculars and flying out the window. Red sighed and plopped down on his bed. He tried to close his eyes in an attempt to rest, but a voice startled him._

 _"_ _Cubone Cubone." The little Cubone cried to him. Red stood up on the bed and looked at the creature._

 _"_ _Hey Cubone." Red stated, patting the bed in an attempt to get it to come over. However, Cubone had another idea; it climbed onto the bed and jumped out of the window._

 _"_ _Cubone wait!" Red yelled, trying to prevent it from jumping. Cubone successfully landed on the ground and started to run toward the tower. Red slammed his fist onto the bed in frustration. All he could do now was sit and wait._

"That explains everything." Green responded. Red grabbed the binoculars and put it back in the package.

"How are you feeling?" Green asked, motioning toward his ankle.

"I think I'll be ready to walk again soon." Red replied with a smile.

"That's good." Green remarked, patting Red's leg.

After a few more weeks, Red's leg was fully healed. He was able to travel again. Green had already left earlier, giving Red her sincerest apologies at not waiting for him to be healthy. Red snickered at this; he knew that she was going to up to more mischief in no time.

Before he set out, he said his farewells to Mr. Fuji.

"Good-bye Mr. Fuji." Red said to him.

"Farewell son," Mr. Fuji remarked, "and good luck on your journey."

"Hey, where's the Cubone?" Red inquired.

"Oh," Mr. Fuji chuckled "your friend took the little critter with her. She said that she couldn't leave it behind." He stated to him, smiling at Cubone finding a home.

'Oh Green.' Red mused, wondering what she was up to now.

Red waved good-bye to Mr. Fuji. He headed toward the next route and on with his adventure.


	11. Chapter 11 Gloom and Doom

Pokemon Red

Chapter 11 Gloom and Doom

The Celadon City Pokémon Gym. Red was standing right in front of it. It had only took a few days for him to travel from Lavender Town to this part of the region. By far, this city was the most beautiful Red had seen on his journey. It was flourishing; people were swarming around, the buildings were large and vibrant, fountains and plants covering the center of the city. It helped that it was a beautiful day outside. Red didn't feel like shopping at the department store. Instead, he went straight for the Pokémon gym; he was ready to get his next badge.

The gym looked sparkling new; it was a circular building with a flower petal for a roof. Red wasn't a gardener, but he was still impressed by the scene. Pikachu, who was let out by Red earlier, meowed at the site, the sunlight shining his silky skin. Red looked at the fluffy yellow mouse on his shoulder and walked up the stairs into the gym. He was about to enter the gym, but he noticed an old man. The man was peering into the gym through the windows.

"Hehehe, look at all those pretty girls." The old man snickered, unaware of Red's presence. Red shook his head and entered the gym.

To his surprise, there was not an arena awaiting him. Instead there was what looked like a greenhouse. There was a sign near the entrance; Red took a moment to look at it.

'Welcome Trainer,' the sign read, 'you will have to go through the garden in order to reach Erika, the gym leader. You will have to find inner peace to complete the maze. Good luck!'

Red looked at it for a few times, feeling a little cheated. He sighed and put Pikachu back in its pokeball. The little mouse was surprised by this action as it was rubbing up against several plants. He had enough of mazes after the incident in the rock tunnel. He walked through an opening in the plants and continued onward toward the gym leader.

Red wandered around the garden, noticing the different species of plants hanging around the gym. The sunlight peered through the roof. It was quiet and peaceful in the garden; he could hear the sounds of bird Pokémon chirping on the roof. He also noticed several grass Pokémon wandering around. There were several Oddish sleeping in pots, looking like they were actually plants. Bellsprout and Weepinbell were sticking to the walls with their roots. This wasn't just a garden for plants; it was a garden for Pokémon also.

Continuing on his walk through the garden maze, he eventually meandered onto a narrow passageway. It was covered in blue vines. He squeezed his body through the crevice. Suddenly, he felt something slimy moving around him. The vines were alive! He saw vacant eyes looking at him through the vines.

'These things must be Pokémon!' Red thought to himself, trying to break free from the bindings. The more he struggled; the more the vines wrapped around him. These vines were wrapping around his entire body. He felt constricted; he couldn't move at all.

'I guess this is it.' Red thought, feeling the vines wrap around his neck and face. The vines covered his eyes, he couldn't see anything. It was all black. He stopped struggling, feeling the end come near as he struggled to breathe. His body relaxed. Suddenly, the vines retreated from him; he was being freed. Red watched as the vines went back to their place on the wall. He slowly walked through the rest of the crevice. After he reached a clearing with only plants, he pulled out his pokedex, curious to see what those creatures were that were in the passageway.

"Tangela, the vine Pokemon." Dex stated. "Its body is wrapped in vines. The rest of its form is hidden beneath these vines. It tangles any moving thing with its vines." Dex turned off.

'I guess those were grass Pokémon.' Red thought, feeling violated from the ensnarement he had received at the hands of those Pokémon. He went through the rest of the maze, calming down. Soon enough, he reached a green door. He opened it, revealing a circular arena with petals around it. In the back, there was a huge flower with a lady in a pink kimono sitting on it.

"Hello challenger." The lady greeted him. "I am Erika, the Celadon City gym leader. This building is a refuge for plants and Pokémon alike. Prepare to learn about the thrashing that Mother Nature can deal." She finished her opening line and stood up from her flower throne. She walked to the edge of the arena and pulled a pokeball from her dress. She threw it onto the field, revealing a Pokémon with a flower petal on its body. It looked vaguely familiar to Green's starter Bulbasaur. Red pulled out his pokedex for information.

"Ivysaur, the seed Pokémon," Dex said "It is Bulbasaur's evolved form. The bulb on its back absorbs nourishment and blooms into a large flower." Dex concluded its report on Erika's Pokémon.

"Ivy Ivysaur." Ivysaur cried, waiting for a battle.

"Let's see what you can do about this." Erika stated, confident in the abilities of her Pokemon.

"Charmander it's time for battle!" Red yelled, throwing out the lizard from its Pokeball.

"Charmander Char." Charmander cried. The two Pokémon stared each other down.

"Ivysaur use Take Down!" Erika yelled. Ivysaur charged at Charmander, hitting it directly. Charmander was knocked off its feet. Ivysaur also lost damage due to the recoil effects of using the attack. Charmander brushed itself off and stood up, ready for its trainer's next order.

"Charmander use ember!" Red ordered.

"Char Char Char." Charmander cried. Charmander sent out spurts of embers at Ivysaur. The seed Pokémon was burned by the hit.

"Stay strong Ivysaur." Erika said to her Pokémon.

"Ivysaur, Ivysaur." Ivysaur cried, raising its head to the sky.

"Use Sunny Day." Erika commanded. Ivysaur unleashed a ray. The sunlight turned harsh. Charmander squinted in the sunlight.

"Ivysaur use Solarbeam!" Erika yelled. Ivysaur charged up and sent a blast powered by the sun straight at Charmander. Charmander was knocked off the arena. The lizard Pokémon got up after the blast cleared, but it was weakened drastically from the hit.

"Return buddy." Red said, putting Charmander back in its pokeball.

"Char." Charmander let out a weak cry as it returned to the capsule device.

"Pidgeotto, I choose you!" Red yelled, throwing the bird Pokémon out to battle.

"Pidgeotto!" Pidgeotto cried. It flew to the ceiling of the arena.

"Ivysaur blast Pidegeotto with a Solarbeam attack." Erika cried.

"Ivy Ivysaur!" Ivysaur cried, sending a sunbeam blast straight at the bird Pokémon. Pidgeotto was able to dodge most of the attack, but the blast clipped its wing. It fell straight to the floor.

"Ivysaur use Body Slam while it is down." Erika commanded. Ivysaur ran across the field and jumped on the weakened bird.

"Pidgeotto!" Pidgeotto cried in pain. Red had no choice but to retrieve his Pokémon.

"Come back Pidgeotto." Red called out. It returned to its pokeball.

"What have you got now?" Erika inquired. "I told you nothing can stop the power of grass Pokémon." She chuckled. Red gritted his teeth and gripped the pokeball in his hand.

"Drowzee, let's show them a thing or two!" Red yelled, throwing the pokeball onto the arena. A yellow and brown pig Pokémon appeared in the arena.

"Drowzee Drowzee zee." Drowzee cried, dancing around slowly. Ivysaur looked confused at the perplexing actions of its opponent. Drowzee continued to dance in spite of this.

"Ivysaur hit it with Vine Whip." Erika commanded her grass partner.

"Ivy Ivysaur." Ivysaur cried, launching two vines at its opponent.

"Drowzee dodge!" Red cried out, but Drowzee needed no orders from Red. She skillfully weaved her way out of the attack. Ivysaur retracted its vines, unable to hit Drowzee.

"Drowzee use Confusion." Red ordered. Drowzee danced and sent a psychic blast at Ivysaur. Ivysaur was knocked unconscious.

"Oh no Ivysaur!" Erika cried, not believing that her Pokémon had been bested. She put it back in its pokeball.

"Great job Drowzee!" Red cried out to his Pokémon. Drowzee just sat there and did not respond to Red's cries.

"Ugh, Drowzee?" Red called out, unaware if Drowzee was even listening to him. Drowzee stood there like a statue, still not responding.

"Weepinbell, let's go!" Erika shouted, throwing out her second Pokémon.

"Bell, bell." Weepinbell cried, shaking its leaves. Red pulled out his pokedex.

"Weepinbell, the flycatcher Pokémon and the evolved form of Bellsprout," Dex said, "it appears to be a plant. It captures unwary prey by dousing them with a toxic powder." Dex finished.

"Drowzee fire a psywave at Weepinbell." Red shouted.

"Drow Drow!" Drowzee cried, listening to Red's command and sending a huge blast of psychic energy at Weepinbell. The grass Pokémon was struck dead on. It looked confused.

"Weepinbell, are you okay?" Erika yelled to her pokemon.

"Weepin Weep Bell." Weepinbell cried, shaking itself from its confused state.

"Use Razor Leaf." Erika commanded. Weepinbell shot sharp leaves at Drowzee. The psychic Pokémon tried to swat them away, but she ended up getting hit.

"Drowzee use Confusion." Red yelled at his creature. She fired a psychic wave at Weepinbell. The flytrap flew into a confused fit.

"Weepinbell use acid!" Erika yelled. Weepinbell tried to comply, but it hit itself in confusion.

"Drowzee slap it around with Pound." Red said, trying to seize the opportunity.

"Zee Zee Drow." Drowzee yelled, charging at her opponent. She hit the plant with a few quick strikes; it was enough to knock it unconscious.

"Wee Wee." Weepinbell cried as it was knocked out. Erika returned it to its pokeball.

"I'll bring out my strongest creature." Erika shrieked. "You will feel the power of grass Pokémon. Let's go Gloom." She said, throwing out her last Pokémon.

"Gloom, Gloom." It cried. It was a blue Pokemon with orange leaves and a reddish-brown flower on its head. It had stubby hands and feet. Red pulled out his pokedex to gain more information.

"Gloom the weed Pokémon," Dex stated, "It smells incredibly foul! However, around one out of a thousand people enjoy sniffing its nose-bending stink. The fluid that oozes from its mouth isn't drool. It is a nectar that is used to attract prey. They will emit a repugnant odor if they feel that their trainer is in trouble." Dex finished its explanation.

"Gloom use Stun Spore." Erika ordered. Gloom sent spores at Drowzee, paralyzing her.

"Return Drowzee." Red remarked, not wanting his Pokémon to fight in that state. He put her back in her capsule and pulled out another pokeball. "Pidgeotto, let's give this another go." Red yelled, throwing out the bird Pokémon for a second go round.

"Pidge Pidgeotto." The bird Pokémon cried. It surveyed the area and noticed its opponent.

"Gloom use Sweet Scent." Erika cried. Gloom sent out a sweet aroma that swarmed around Pidgeotto. The bird loved the odor and plunged straight toward Gloom's flower. It was completely unaware of Gloom's intent.

"Pidgeotto get out of there!" Red yelled, trying to get his Pokémon to stop its curious behavior. However, Pidgeotto ignored his calls and continued to consume the nectar from Gloom's plant.

"Use Acid, Gloom!" Erika ordered. The sweet nectar Pidgeotto was consuming was swapped with a poisonous substance. Pidgeotto choked and fell to the ground. It was poisoned from the attack.

"Pidgeotto return." Red said, sending his bird back to its pokeball.

"Now you see the power of my Gloom." Erika smugly declared.

"It's not over yet Erika. Charmander, I choose you." Red said, sending out his fire lizard.

"Charmander Char!" Charmander cried, flexing its arms.

"Gloom use Stun Spore." Erika commanded. Gloom shot yellow spores at Charmander in an attempt to paralyze him.

"Charmander use Fire Spin." Red ordered. The swirl of fire burned the spores and trapped Gloom in a vortex.

"Gloom Gloom." Gloom cried, hurt by the fire.

"Charmander attack Gloom with ember." Red stated.

"Char Charmander." Charmander cried as it sent spurts of fire at Gloom. The plant hybrid was unable to avoid the attack.

"Gloom." Groom cried in pain, it was burned by the attack.

"Gloom use acid." Erika commanded, trying to turn the tide of the battle. Gloom shot acid from its petal; it was enough to break through the spiral of flames.

"Now Gloom hit Charmander with your Petal Dance." Erika shouted. Charmander braced itself for the attack. Gloom summoned petals from around the arena and formed a whirlwind of flowers. Then it shot them straight at Charmander. Charmander received a lot of damage, but Gloom became confused from the attack.

"Charmander use Ember." Red cried.

"Gloom shoot Charmander with acid." Erika cried at the same time. Charmander sent spurts of flames at Gloom while Gloom hit itself it confusion. The attack knocked Gloom unconscious.

"Gloom Gloom." Gloom muttered as it was defeated. Erika sighed; all three of her Pokémon had been defeated. She walked over to Red.

"Congratulations Challenger," Erika said, handing him a badge "that is the Rainbow badge, it is proof of your victory." She walked back to her flower throne and sat down. Suddenly, the lights turned off for a few moments. When they turned back on, Erika had disappeared. Red looked around in confusion. He sighed and walked toward Erika's throne. He noticed that on her side of the arena there was a stairway. He went down to below the arena and walked out of the gym. To his surprise, there was a huge garden of flowers in the back. He took in all the different colors and aromas.

'This really is a beautiful place.' Red thought about the garden. He took in a deep breath and went back to the front of the building. Even more surprising was that the pervy, old man was still there, but this time he was surrounded by flower girls from the gym.

"Get out of here you pervert!" They cried at him.

"Oh! You all are so beautiful!" He cried while blushing.

"Eww!" They screeched. In a flash, Officer Jenny appeared with her trusty Growlithe.

"Sick em boy!" Officer Jenny yelled.

"Grow Growlithe." Growlithe cried, leaping toward the old man and restraining him by biting him.

"Oh! Ow!" The old man cried. Officer Jenny handcuffed the man and dragged him to the cop car.

"This is the last time. You've been caught peeping here for the sixth time this month. You have the right to remain silent, everything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law." Officer Jenny said, reading the old man his Miranda rights.

"My ladies!" The old man cried as he was put in the car. Officer Jenny and her Growlithe hopped in the cop car and sped to the police station. The women from the gym yelled in excitement. Red was confused by this display and decided to call it a day.

'Well that was interesting.' He thought. He headed toward the local Pokémon Center for a good night's sleep, with his new Rainbow badge in tow.


	12. Chapter 12 Sleeping Snorlax, Hidden Red

Pokemon Red

Chapter 12 Sleeping Snorlax, Hidden Red

The sunlight peered through the window in the Pokémon center, waking the sleeping Red. He yawned and rubbed his eyes. He got up from the bed and went to the bathroom to brush his teeth. He had gotten a pretty average night of sleep, but for some reason he felt refreshed.

'It must have been the trip to the gym.' Red thought while running the toothbrush against his teeth. He continued for a minute, and then he spit the toothpaste out of his mouth and into the porcelain sink. He turned the faucet on to remove the excess waste. The spearmint flavor still stinging his mouth. He rinsed off his toothbrush and put in on the sink. After that, he disrobed and took a long, hot shower.

A few minutes after finishing breakfast, Red went to Nurse Joy to retrieve his Pokémon. She gave him back his six pokeballs, and he went on his way. Since he arrived to Celadon City from the east, he decided to go west to exit the urban area. He walked as far as he possibly could, the dense area of buildings turning to sparse shrubs and patches of grass here and there. He continued walking until an obstruction blocked his path; it was a huge, hulking sleeping Pokémon!

"Snore …. Snore." The Pokémon murmured in its sleep. It had a black body with a white face and stomach, looking similar to a panda bear. Red tried to move around it, but it was no use; the Pokémon would roll over in his sleep and stop him from getting past it. Not wanting to disrupt the peaceful slumber of this Pokémon, he decided to head back into the city and come back another time.

Although it was discouraging to be momentarily delayed on his journey, Red took this opportunity to do some battling in the city square. He out matched most of the trainers, beating them with his team. After his seventh straight victory, another challenger approached him; he gave off a stronger aura than the others he had faced. The challenger was a boy about his age, with shiny blond hair and sparkling green eyes. He wore a lime green jacket over a plain white tee shirt and brown cargo pants. Instead of boots, which a regular trainer would wear on their travels, he wore sandals, indicating that he did not travel. He was an urban dweller.

"Care for a battle, mate?" The trainer asked, reaching for a pokeball.

"Absolutely." Red gleefully responded, pulling out a pokeball from his waist holder. He was always in the mood for a battle. "By the way, what's your name?" He questioned the boy. "My name is Red." He stated, introducing himself.

"The name's Marcus." The boy in the green jacket responded, flashing a smirk Red's way. He walked about fifty feet from Red. They were in the town center so there was plenty of room for them to battle.

"Game on," Marcus said, "Nidoran , it's time to go!" He shouted, throwing out his pokeball. A small purple Pokémon that looked like a rabbit appeared, howling to the sky.

"Dugtrio, I choose you!" Red shouted, throwing out his ground type Pokémon.

"Dugtrio, trio." Dugtrio cried. Red pulled out his pokedex to inspect the rabbit like Pokémon in front of him.

"Nidoran , the poison rabbit Pokémon," Dex stated "unlike most Pokémon, the male and female versions of Nidoran differ drastically; they have different colors and different evolutionary lines. They are pesky creatures and love to burrow underground. Their favorite food is carrots, and wild Nidoran normally steal food from gardens." Dex finished. Satisfied with this explanation, Red felt like he was prepared for battle.

"Dugtrio, use Magnitude!" Red ordered his Pokémon. Dugtrio braced itself.

"Dug Dugtrio!" Dugtrio cried, sending out a shock wave from the ground. Nidoran could not avoid the hit. It sustained damage.

"Nidoran attack Dugtrio with Horn Attack!" Marcus shouted. Nidoran 's horn glowed as it charged toward Dugtrio. Nidoran smashed its horn into Dugtrio, knocking it unconscious.

"Is that all you got?" Marcus asked, feeling that the battle was already a little underwhelming.

"Don't worry, I've got plenty of surprises for you!" Red yelled. "Drowzee, let's go!" He shouted, throwing the pokeball onto the ground.

"Drowzee Drow." Drowzee cried, peering at her foe. Nidoran felt disturbed by the gaze, feeling that her eyes were looking through its very soul.

"Drowzee hit it with Psywave." Red commanded, pointing at the Nidoran just in case Drowzee wasn't aware that she was called out to battle. Unfortunately, Drowzee was normally not very observant.

"Drowzee!" Drowzee cried, sending a psychic blast straight at the defenseless Nidoran . Two super effective attacks were too much for it to take in this battle; it collapsed onto the ground.

"Great job Nidoran ." Marcus said, commending his Pokémon and putting it back into its pokeball. He grabbed another ball from his waist.

"Vulpix, let's set this battle ablaze." Marcus remarked, sending a fluffy, red fox into battle.

"Vulpix Vul." Vulpix cried, flipping its tail from side to side. Red had never seen this Pokémon before; he pulled out his pokedex for information.

"Vulpix, the fire fox Pokémon," The pokedex stated "they normally hunt alone. Many say they have psychic powers and can plant curses on people they have been wounded by. Their natural beauty casts doubt on this rumor and makes them a popular choice for trainers." The pokedex went silent.

"Pix Vulpix." Vulpix uttered, feeling like laying down and taking a nap.

"Vulpix use Flamethrower!" Marcus cried. Vulpix tiredly went into action; it walked closer to Drowzee and shot flames at it. Drowzee's face was burned.

"Drow! Drow!" It cried. It ran into the nearby water fountain for relief.

"Drowzee Drow." It moaned, the cold water helping the burn.

"Vulpix use Curse!" Marcus cried.

'Oh no!' Red thought. 'The pokedex was right! Vulpix can inflict curses.' He cringed. However, Vulpix speed went down while its attack and defense increased.

"Did your Vulpix put a curse on my Drowzee?" Red asked, scratching his head.

"No, knucklehead." Marcus replied, chuckling in laughter. "Curse is a move that lowers some stats and raises others. It's like a double edged sword. The only time that happens is with ghost Pokémon, and I doubt my cute, little Vulpix here is a ghost." He stated with a smirk.

"Vulpix! Vulpix!" Vulpix cried, licking itself while Drowzee was busy swimming.

"Drowzee! Drow!" Drowzee cried contently. It was now swimming instead of battling.

"Oh Drowzee." Red murmured disappointedly, knowing that there was no chance in reining in his Pokémon now. He grabbed the pokeball and retrieved Drowzee.

"Drow?" Drowzee confusedly cried as it was put back in its pokeball.

"Got any other tricks Red?" Marcus asked, waiting patiently for another round. Vulpix was still grooming itself, not really worried about the next opponent.

"Of course," Red replied, grabbing another pokeball from his waist "Pikachu, I choose you!" Red yelled, throwing out his plucky, yellow mouse.

"Chu Chu!" Pikachu cried in contentment as if saying 'I'm free.' It jumped up into the air a few times.

"Pikachu use thundershock!" Red yelled.

"Chu Chu Pikachu!" Pikachu cried, sending a shock of electricity at Vulpix. The fox was shocked.

"Vulpix!" Vulpix cried as it was hit.

"Now Pikachu use Quick Attack!" Red commanded. Pikachu charged toward Vulpix and hit the poor fox. Vulpix let out another cry and collapsed on the ground.

"Great job Pikachu." Red said, putting Pikachu back in its pokeball.

"You did great Vulpix." Marcus muttered, putting his defeated Pokémon back in its ball.

"Nidoran , prepare for battle." Marcus yelled, throwing out another rabbit creature, this time though it was blue instead of purple like the other Nidoran.

"This is the female variant of Nidoran." Marcus commented as the Pokémon hopped around like a bunny.

'Two Nidoran.' Red thought; he always tried to keep his team type balanced. The thought of having two Pokémon of the same type didn't gel with him.

"Bellsprout, I choose you." Red yelled, throwing out the dual type grass poison Pokémon. He wanted to give it more battling experience.

"Bellsprout Bell." Bellsprout cried.

"Bellsprout attack with Vine Whip!" Red ordered.

"Bell Bell." Bellsprout responded, sending vines at the rabbit.

"Nidoran dodge and use Peck." Marcus yelled in retaliation.

"Nido Nido." Nidoran cried, dodging the attack by hopping around the vines. It charged toward Bellsprout and pecked it on the head.

"Bellsprout sprout!" Bellsprout cried in pain from the attack, for some reason it was super effective.

"Use Growth." Red asked his Pokémon. The grass type absorbed nutrients from the sun; its special attack rose from this action.

"Hit it with Flamethrower, Nidoran ." Marcus commanded, wanting to put an end to this round quickly, knowing how pesky defensive grass types could be in battle.

"Nido Nido." Nidoran cried, breathing a shot of flames at Bellsprout. The grass type was scorched.

"Bell!" Bellsprout cried in pain, the fire attack was super effective against it.

"Bellsprout use Ingrain." Red yelled, hoping that it would ameliorate the burns it had received. Bellsprout plunged its roots into the ground and gained nutrients from the soil. It regained some of the health that it had lost. Then, it began to mysteriously glow, startling both Marcus and Red.

"What's happening Bellsprout?" Red yelped, wondering if his Pokémon was okay or not.

"Bellsprout Bell….." It cried as it began to change shape. Once the light cleared, Red could see that Bellsprout had changed drastically in appearance. Bellsprout had evolved into a Weepinbell!

"Weepin Weepinbell!" The newly evolved Weepinbell cried.

"Yes!" Red exclaimed. "Weepinbell you evolved." He said happily. Weepinbell smiled at him.

"Now use Razor Leaf." Red commanded. Weepinbell sent sharp leaves at Nidoran . It was a critical hit; Nidoran was knocked unconscious. Marcus sighed and put his Pokémon back in its pokeball. He walked up to Red and his newly evolved Weepinbell.

"That was a great battle Red." Marcus proclaimed, shaking hands with Red. "You're Pokémon have a lot of toughness on the battlefield." He lavished him with praise.

"Thank you." Red said while blushing in embarrassment. He did not take praise well.

"You should go to the Celadon Department Store." Marcus noted. "There are evolution stones there; you can use them to evolve your Pikachu and your Weepinbell into stronger Pokemon." He stated.

"I can evolve my Pokémon with a stone?" Red asked giving Marcus a skeptical look.

"Of course you can," Marcus replied "I was going to evolve my Vulpix earlier, but I saw you battling and decided to wait because I didn't want to lose the opportunity of fighting a tough trainer like yourself." He told Red, who was still uncomfortable with the acclamations from him. "Here look." He said. He pulled out Vulpix from its pokeball.

"Vulpix Vul." Vulpix cried, tired from the battle.

"Here Vulpix." Marcus called out to his Pokemon. He grabbed a shiny red stone from his pocket and gave it to the fox. Suddenly, it began to glow in the same way Weepinbell did when it evolved. Within seconds it evolved into a beautiful yellow fox. Red pulled out his pokedex.

"Ninetales, the mystic fox Pokémon," Dex stated "Legend says that once a Ninetales put a curse on a Pokémon that was meant for its trainer. The Pokémon selflessly flung itself in front of her trainer and protected him from harm." Dex finished.

'That was similar to the story I heard in Lavender Town.' Red mused.

"See, these stones work wonders." Marcus commented.

"Nine Nine." Ninetales cried, its tails swaying in the wind.

"You should think about evolving your Pokémon if you want both you and your Pokémon to become stronger." Marcus said. He waved goodbye to Red and walked off to battle other trainers.

After discovering that his Pokémon could evolve through the use of stones, he bolted toward the department store to buy stones for his Pokémon. He was amazed at how many floors and shops there were in the building. There were stores for every type of person and Pokémon; clothing stores, pastry shops, electronics, Pokémon food, candy shops, and shops for Pokémon travelers. There were escalators and elevators to access the upper floors. There were about five in total. On the ground floor, there were a few amusement rides for little kids such as a small coaster and tea cups. The next floor had mostly clothing shops and designer stores. There was even a shop where you could make your own Pokémon doll. Not finding what he was looking for, he went to the next floor.

Eventually he found the shop on the third floor, it was a jewelry and a Pokémon stone store. Naturally, the jewelry was tons more expensive than the Pokémon stones. There were both stones for battling and for evolution purposes. Red saw a leaf stone and a thunder stone from a cabinet and went to the clerk.

"I'll take a Leaf stone and thunder stone please sir." Red asked the clerk.

"Certainly." The clerk responded in a monotone voice. He first grabbed the leaf stone, which was an emerald stone with a leaf in the center. Next, he retrieved a thunder stone from the cabinet; it was a yellow stone with a thunderbolt insignia carved onto it. The clerk put them into a bag and tallied his order.

"That will be $4200 Poke." The clerk said, reaching out his hand for the money. Red pulled out his wallet and gave the man the amount.

"Have a nice day." The clerk kindly said. Red left the store. He went back down to the ground floor and sat on the edge of a fountain that was in the center of the floor. He grabbed a penny from his pocket and made a wish. He threw it in the water. He knew it was a silly thing to do, but Green made him accustomed to doing things like this. With her spunky personality, she got him to do a lot of things he wasn't entirely proud of. She kind of grew on him. He sighed and pulled out Weepinbell's pokeball.

"Come out Weepinbell." He said. Weepinbell emerged from its pokeball.

"Weepin Weepinbell." Weepinbell cried, happy to be out of its ball and not have to battle.

"I have something for you," Red said, holding out the leaf stone "if you touch it, you will evolve again." He told the flytrap Pokémon, who was entranced by the shiny looking stone. "What do you think?" He asked his pal, wanting it to make the decision.

"Weep Weep." Weepinbell cried, grabbing the stone from Red. It marveled at the stone until it started to glow again. For the second time this day, Weepinbell was evolving. When Weepinbell could be seen again, it had evolved into a larger flytrap with a leaf on the top of it, slightly covering its mouth.

"Victree!" The evolved Pokémon cried. Red flashed his Pokedex.

"Victreebel, the final evolutionary stage of Bellsprout," Dex said "Victreebel hang in trees and emit a sweet aroma that captures the attention of bugs. When insects suck on the sap emitted by Victreebel, the grass Pokémon will capture the bug and slowly digest it with its acid." Dex turned off.

"Tree Tree!" Victreebel screeched, trying to 'hug' Red. However its trainer was too fast for it and was able to put it back in its pokeball.

'That was rather peculiar.' Red thought. He put Victreebel's pokeball back around his waist. He then proceeded to summon Pikachu.

"Pika Pi." Pikachu cooed, snuggling up to its trainer.

"Hey Pikachu, I got something for you." Red said, holding up the thunder stone for him to see. "This will make you evolve into Raichu if you hold it." He wondered what Pikachu's response would be to his statement. Pikachu shook his head defiantly and slapped the thunder stone in Red's hand into the fountain.

'Well I guess that answers that question.' Red thought to himself. Respecting his Pokémon's decision, he put Pikachu back in its pokeball.

Now that a few hours had passed, Red decided to head back to where the Pokémon was sleeping to see if it had awoken from its slumber. The walk took about a half an hour from Celadon to where the obstructing Pokémon lay. To his misfortune, the sleeping giant was still there, snoring peacefully. He felt his eye twitch in annoyance.

'When will this big lug move?' Red thought, kicking the dirt in frustration. He let out a loud scream. Surprisingly, it didn't even budge from its sleep, instead it continued to snore without interruption. He huffed in frustration.

'Noise won't wake it up.' He thought. Then, an idea popped up into his head.

"Pidgeotto, it's time to fly." Red yelled, throwing out his bird Pokémon.

"Pidge Pidge!" Pidgeotto cried, wondering what its next assignment from its trainer will be.

"Use Whirlwind on that bubble of flab." Red ordered. Pidgeotto complied and flapped its wings in a rapid fashion, creating a torrent of wind that sped toward the unconscious creature. In another aggravating moment for Red, the attack bounced off the creature; it had no effect at all.

"Urrrggghhh!" Red groaned in irritation, ready to start screaming. "What is this thing anyway?" He asked no one in particular. Taking a few deep breaths and calming down, Red went to his Pokedex for information.

"Snorlax, the sleeping giant Pokémon," Dex stated "This Pokémon will consume large amounts of food then rest for days on end. This creature spends over ninety-four percent of its life asleep." Dex finished its analysis of the obstruction and powered down.

"A Snorlax huh." Red remarked. "Well I guess I have to catch it then." He said, while throwing a pokeball. The ball bounced on Snorlax and did not activate. He was confused at this result. Once again, he consulted his pokedex.

"Snorlax must be awake to be captured," Dex stated "otherwise their defense capabilities will kick in while it is asleep, preventing capture." Dex said informatively.

"You're telling me that this thing can keep me from capturing it when it is asleep." Red yelled at the pokedex, resisting the urge to chuck it on the ground. He groaned. It was a very hot day, and now he would have to go back to Celadon City. He let Pidgeotto stay outside of its pokeball while he walked back for the second time that day.

When he returned to the Pokemon Center, he did one of two things that teenage boys never asked for, help; the other being directions. He walked up to the front desk and consulted Nurse Joy, telling her about the situation.

"Oh boy, a Snorlax!" She exclaimed. "Unfortunately, I don't know of any way to get it to move from its path. Snorlax are notorious for sleeping for days on end." She said in a sad voice. Red looked down in disappointment. "Officer Jenny may be able to help you." She told him. This perked him up. "She should be at the station right now." She informed Red.

"Thank you Nurse Joy!" Red yelled to her, already halfway out the door, running to the police station to see if Officer Jenny could help him with his predicament. The police building was on the left side of town. It was a blue building with a Chansey on top.

'That's odd.' Red thought. 'Normally Chansey are associated with Pokémon Centers.' He furrowed his brow.

When he walked into the police station, he noticed that there were Pokémon running the daily operations of the office. There were Chansey, Machoke, and Kadabra. It was a Pokémon Jail Station! Red walked up to the front counter. He was met by a cheerful Chansey.

"Chance Chansey." Chansey happily cried.

"Hi." Red greeted the pink Pokémon. "Is Officer Jenny here?" He asked the Pokémon serving as the receptionist.

"Chan Chan." Chansey replied, nodding her head in affirmation.

"Great." Red replied. Chansey went to go get Officer Jenny. In a few moments, Chansey came back with the officer in tow.

"Hello citizen." Officer Jenny greeted Red.

"Good afternoon Officer Jenny," Red replied "my name's Red." He greeted her politely.

"Hey, did I see you at the gym yesterday?" She asked perplexed.

"Um…probably, you were arresting that peeper." Red responded nervously.

"Oh that's right!" She exclaimed while letting out a chuckle. "I gave him warnings before. I had to lock him up because of the complaints." She motioned to the cell holding the old man from the gym. Said peeper walked up to the walls and began to wail.

"You can't keep me from my ladies!" The old man shouted. "Soon enough, I will have them!" He continued to rant. Jenny and Red chose to ignore him.

"So I guess you're here to turn yourself in as an accomplice to a crime." She said jokingly. Red laughed.

"No," Red responded, "I was just wondering if there was anything you could do about a wild Snorlax that's blocking the path west." Red asked her, hoping that she could solve his dilemma.

"Sorry kid," Jenny responded. "I can't move a Snorlax. When a Snorlax is sleeping, it's almost impossible to get rid of it." Red felt his heart sink. "However," Jenny mused, furrowing her brow in an attempt to remember something "there is a lady who lives in Celadon that is a Pokémon charmer. She may have something that will help you move that Snorlax." She informed him.

"Thank you Officer Jenny." Red replied graciously.

"No problem kid." Jenny replied.

"You can't stop me from getting my reward!" The old man howled from his cell. "You'll see; I'll be covered with bikini clad women, worshipping me on the sands of Hoenn.

"Huhh…" Jenny sighed. "When he gets going like this, he doesn't stop. I guess I just have to quiet him down." She motioned to a nearby Machoke, who nodded and walked toward the cell. She turned back to the trainer in front of her. "Have a nice day Red." She waved goodbye and went to deal with the troublemaker.

It took Red a while to find the shop, but eventually he found a small store with red neon lights, with the sign reading 'Pokémon tamer'. He tried to open the front door, but he found it to be locked. Attached to the door was a note, 'be back in one week' the note read. Red sighed in disbelief. Because the tamer was not in town, he would have to stay in Celadon for another week. He groaned; it just hadn't been his day.

'At the very least, I can still walk around unlike in Lavender Town.' He thought. That was enough to brighten his mood. He walked back to the center of the city to find more trainers to engage in battle.

Pokedex

Pokémon Seen: 68

Pokémon Obtained: 15


End file.
